3/16/10
Food Justice for your Haggadah needs....
As promised, an insert to help bring food justice to your seder table.
3/8/10
Panegyric/Ode
What do YOU love most about American Judaism/Jewish history post-1900? Celebrate your love: write a panegyric or an ode...
2/17/10
proto-Zionisms? Utopian aspirations? Back-to-the-Land?
Since I know you're interested, here's an article on Jewish Agricultural Colonies in the United States from JewishEncyclopedia.com.
Calof discussion questions
Courtesy of JWA's fantastic article on Rachel Clalof's memoir (by way of the fantastically informative Jewish genealogy blog Tracing the Tribe--see the entry on Jewish homesteading from Sept. 2008), here are some discussion questions we might consider:
1. Rachel is shocked by her first sight of a "pioneer woman" on the Plains whom she compares unfavorably to any "self-respecting" Jewish woman in Russia. Why does she see homesteading as a "terrible way to live," close "to the living level of an animal"? Do her feelings change?
2. The prairie becomes a main "character" in the story, influencing Rachel Calof's life as significantly as any person. What ordinary and special crises does the family experience as a result of the rough weather and living conditions of the Plains? What impact did the prairie have on Rachel's development as a person?
3. Rachel provides glimpses into significant moments of women's lives on the plains. What did her "knockout" Jewish wedding with its "magnificent banquet" and "festivities" consist of? How does she manage pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation amidst the hardship of prairie living? What role did what she calls her mother-in-law's "religious fanaticism, beliefs, and superstition" play in the "world of madness" she inhabits after her first child's birth?
4. Rachel describes a scene in which the shochet brought in to slaughter an ox on the occasion of her son's brit orders her to eat traif meat. How did the circumstances of the birth and the mother's health affect his decision? How do you regard his decision and the family's response to it?
5. How successful was the arranged marriage between Rachel and Abraham? What role did Abraham play in her life and on the farm? What attitudes does Rachel express as she describes their farm's eventual success and Abraham's letters of commendation from "two presidents of the United States"? Although Rachel doesn't discuss her own role, Jewish women often helped their husbands run family businesses–whether farms, stores, hotels, or factories. What role do you imagine Rachel played in the success of the family's enterprise? Are there women in your family who made important contributions to family business enterprises?
6. Rachel Calof clearly makes herself the heroine of her memoir. How might the descriptions change if the story had been told from the perspective of Abraham? Of Rachel's mother-in-law?
7. Do you consider Rachel Calof an introspective writer? What insights does she offer about her own character and behavior?
8. How significant was Judaism in this story? Does it emerge only as a negative factor or were there positive qualities to Rachel's religious background and life? What rituals and observances does she mention in the book? Why do you think her house became the "center for all the Jewish holiday celebrations" for the Jewish farmers "from far and near"? What kind of celebrations do you imagine took place?
9. For Jewish immigrants, passing on traditional Jewish values to children was an obligation fraught with tension. Rachel tells us very little about this. How do you think Rachel and Abraham might have handled this issue?
1. Rachel is shocked by her first sight of a "pioneer woman" on the Plains whom she compares unfavorably to any "self-respecting" Jewish woman in Russia. Why does she see homesteading as a "terrible way to live," close "to the living level of an animal"? Do her feelings change?
2. The prairie becomes a main "character" in the story, influencing Rachel Calof's life as significantly as any person. What ordinary and special crises does the family experience as a result of the rough weather and living conditions of the Plains? What impact did the prairie have on Rachel's development as a person?
3. Rachel provides glimpses into significant moments of women's lives on the plains. What did her "knockout" Jewish wedding with its "magnificent banquet" and "festivities" consist of? How does she manage pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation amidst the hardship of prairie living? What role did what she calls her mother-in-law's "religious fanaticism, beliefs, and superstition" play in the "world of madness" she inhabits after her first child's birth?
4. Rachel describes a scene in which the shochet brought in to slaughter an ox on the occasion of her son's brit orders her to eat traif meat. How did the circumstances of the birth and the mother's health affect his decision? How do you regard his decision and the family's response to it?
5. How successful was the arranged marriage between Rachel and Abraham? What role did Abraham play in her life and on the farm? What attitudes does Rachel express as she describes their farm's eventual success and Abraham's letters of commendation from "two presidents of the United States"? Although Rachel doesn't discuss her own role, Jewish women often helped their husbands run family businesses–whether farms, stores, hotels, or factories. What role do you imagine Rachel played in the success of the family's enterprise? Are there women in your family who made important contributions to family business enterprises?
6. Rachel Calof clearly makes herself the heroine of her memoir. How might the descriptions change if the story had been told from the perspective of Abraham? Of Rachel's mother-in-law?
7. Do you consider Rachel Calof an introspective writer? What insights does she offer about her own character and behavior?
8. How significant was Judaism in this story? Does it emerge only as a negative factor or were there positive qualities to Rachel's religious background and life? What rituals and observances does she mention in the book? Why do you think her house became the "center for all the Jewish holiday celebrations" for the Jewish farmers "from far and near"? What kind of celebrations do you imagine took place?
9. For Jewish immigrants, passing on traditional Jewish values to children was an obligation fraught with tension. Rachel tells us very little about this. How do you think Rachel and Abraham might have handled this issue?
Maurice de Hirsch
2/16/10
Sod Houses, Sod Schools, Sod Lean-Tos, all the sod you can use...
Check out the fantastic archive of images of sod architecture (plus lots of pictures from the 1890s) collected by The Fred Hulstrand History in Pictures Collection (devoted to life on the Northern Great Plains).
2/10/10
Jewish life in North Dakota
Check out what Rachel Caloff helped start...Jewish North Dakota!
The URJ affiliate in Grand Forks, ND is only 90 miles from Devil's Lake! Congregation B'nai Israel is served by a Cincinnati student.
The URJ affiliate in Grand Forks, ND is only 90 miles from Devil's Lake! Congregation B'nai Israel is served by a Cincinnati student.
2/9/10
She may have felt all alone...
...but there were other pioneering Jewish women living similarly rough lives. Check out Stories Untold: Jewish Pioneer Women.
2/7/10
What they ate that oh-so-fateful night
"Following is the menu for the 'trefa banquet' exactly as it appeared in the pages of the Cincinnati Enquirer for July 12, 1883. ([Copy retains] misspellings or printer's errors.)
Menu
Little Neck Clams (half shell)
Amontillado Sherry
Potages
Consommé Royal
Sauternes
Poissons
Fillet de Boef, aux Champignons
Soft-shell Crabs
a l'Amerique, Pommes Duchesse
Salade of Shrimps
St. Julien
Entree
Sweet Breads a la Monglas
Petits Pois a la Francaise
Diedescheimer
Relevee
Poulets a la Viennoise
Asperges Sauce,
Vinaigrette Pommes Pate
Roman Punch
Grenouiles a la Creme
and Cauliflower
Roti
Vol au Vents de Pigeons,
a la Tyrolienne
Salade de Saitue
G. H. Mumm Extra Dry
Hors D'Oeuvers
Bouchies de Volaille, a la Regeurs
Olives Caviv, Sardeiles de Hollands
Brissotins au Supreme Tomatoe
Mayonaise
Sucres
Ice-Cream
Assorted and Ornamented Cakes
Entrements
Fromages Varies Fruits Varies
Martell CognacJohn J. Appel, "The Trefa Banquet," Commentary, February, 1966.
Cafe Noir"
Emma Lazarus (1849-1887)
The New Colossus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
—Emma Lazarus, 1883
You said you wanted a map...
Here's your Yiddish tourism map:
As taken from John Foster Carr's "Guide to the United States for the Jewish Immigrant" (1912), Jenna Weissman Joselit's The Wonders of America, and The Jewish Daily Forward (July 18, 2003).
"The Sabbath Movement" of the late 1870s
The New York Times reported it as "organization of an anti-desecration and Sabbath observance society." Here's the link to the article that appeared December 24, 1879.
2/1/10
Uniting them all is "Religious Liberty"
as commissioned by B'nai Brith and designed by Moses Ezekiel (1844-1917) in 1876
The caption under the statue reads:
"Religious Liberty, Dedicated to the People of the United States
by the Order of B'nai Brith and Israelites of America"
1/26/10
1/24/10
A Reply
"Gentlemen:
While I receive with much satisfaction your address replete with expressions of affection and esteem, I rejoice in the opportunity of assuring that I shall always retain a grateful remembrance of the coridal welcome I experience in my visit to New Port from all classes of citizens.
The reflection on the days of difficulty and danger which are past is rendered the more sweet from a consciousness that they are succeeded by days of uncommon prosperity and security. If we have wisdom to make the best use of the advantages with which we are now favored, we cannot fail, under the just administration of a good government, to become a great and a happy people.
The citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy, a policy worth of imitation.
All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of once class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights. For happily the government of the United States, which give to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.
It would be inconsistent with the frankness of my character not to avow that I am pleased with your favorable opinion of my administration and fervent wishes for my felicity.
May the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants, while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig-tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.
May the Father of all mercies scatter light and not darkness in our paths, and make us all in our several vocations useful here, and, in his own due time and way, everlastingly happy. G. Washington
While I receive with much satisfaction your address replete with expressions of affection and esteem, I rejoice in the opportunity of assuring that I shall always retain a grateful remembrance of the coridal welcome I experience in my visit to New Port from all classes of citizens.
The reflection on the days of difficulty and danger which are past is rendered the more sweet from a consciousness that they are succeeded by days of uncommon prosperity and security. If we have wisdom to make the best use of the advantages with which we are now favored, we cannot fail, under the just administration of a good government, to become a great and a happy people.The citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy, a policy worth of imitation.
All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of once class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights. For happily the government of the United States, which give to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.
It would be inconsistent with the frankness of my character not to avow that I am pleased with your favorable opinion of my administration and fervent wishes for my felicity.
May the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants, while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig-tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.
May the Father of all mercies scatter light and not darkness in our paths, and make us all in our several vocations useful here, and, in his own due time and way, everlastingly happy. G. Washington
From The Hebrew Congregation of New Port, Rhode Island to George Washington (Aug. 17, 1790)
"Sir,
Permit the children of the stock of Abraham to approach you with the most cordial affection and esteem for your person and merits and to join with our fellow-citizens in welcoming you to New Port.
With pleasure we reflect on those days--those days of difficulty and danger--when the God of Israel who delivered David from the peril of the sword shielded your head in the day of battle. And we rejoice to think that the same Spirit, who rested in the bosom of the greatly beloved Daniel, enabling him to preside over the provinces of the Babylonish Empire, rests, and ever will rest upon you, enabling you to discharge the arduous duties of Chief Magistrate in these states.
Deprived as we have hitherto been of the invaluable rights of free citizens, we now, with a deep sense of gratitude to the Almighty Disposer of all events, behold a government which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance, but generously affording to all liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship, deeming every one, of whatever nation, tongue, or language equal parts of the great governmental machine. This so ample and extensive federal union whose basis is philanthropy, mutual confidence, and public virtue, we cannot but acknowledge to be the work of the Great God, who ruleth in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, doing whasoever seemeth him good.
For all the blessings of civil and religious liberty which we enjoy under an equal and benign administration, we desire to send up our thanks to the Ancient of Days, the great Preserver of Men, beseeching him that the angel who conducted our forefathers through the wilderness into the promised land may graciously conduct you through all the dangers and difficulties of this mortal life. And when like Joshua, full of days and full of honor, you are gathered to your fathers, may you be admitted into the heavenly paradise to partake of the water of life and the tree of immortality."
Permit the children of the stock of Abraham to approach you with the most cordial affection and esteem for your person and merits and to join with our fellow-citizens in welcoming you to New Port.
With pleasure we reflect on those days--those days of difficulty and danger--when the God of Israel who delivered David from the peril of the sword shielded your head in the day of battle. And we rejoice to think that the same Spirit, who rested in the bosom of the greatly beloved Daniel, enabling him to preside over the provinces of the Babylonish Empire, rests, and ever will rest upon you, enabling you to discharge the arduous duties of Chief Magistrate in these states.
Deprived as we have hitherto been of the invaluable rights of free citizens, we now, with a deep sense of gratitude to the Almighty Disposer of all events, behold a government which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance, but generously affording to all liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship, deeming every one, of whatever nation, tongue, or language equal parts of the great governmental machine. This so ample and extensive federal union whose basis is philanthropy, mutual confidence, and public virtue, we cannot but acknowledge to be the work of the Great God, who ruleth in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, doing whasoever seemeth him good.
For all the blessings of civil and religious liberty which we enjoy under an equal and benign administration, we desire to send up our thanks to the Ancient of Days, the great Preserver of Men, beseeching him that the angel who conducted our forefathers through the wilderness into the promised land may graciously conduct you through all the dangers and difficulties of this mortal life. And when like Joshua, full of days and full of honor, you are gathered to your fathers, may you be admitted into the heavenly paradise to partake of the water of life and the tree of immortality."
The Thirteen Original Colonies
Timeline-ing
Here's an excellent resource and beginning point for creating the concurrent timeline of our dreams--European history, American Jewish history, and American Events--as if made just for us by the people over at From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America (linked on the right side of this very blog). Enjoy.
1/22/10
How have the mighty fallen....
Eulogy: In the first quadmester, each student will write a 2-page eulogy about a person who or a place, site, object, community, organization or building that contributed in some way to American Judaism prior to the 20th century. As a eulogy, it most focus on someone who is no longer living or on some organization/place/institution/object that no longer operates or functions. Whom or what one choose to eulogize needs to be connected to Jews or a Jewish community but does not need to be Jewish; the eulogy, however, must focus on the contributions that person or place (or whatever) made to the advancement of Judaism in the New World. Full details here. Eulogies due no later than March 1st.
1/18/10
Swing by and see him yourself...
Haym Salomon (1740-1785) was a contemporary of Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786) and immigrated to the soon-to-be United States in the early 1770s. His letter to the Editor was published in 1784, just one year after Mendelssohn's Jerusalem.
(Here he is as seen in Pan Pacific Park, Los Angeles, at the corner of 3rd and Gardner)
(Here he is as seen in Pan Pacific Park, Los Angeles, at the corner of 3rd and Gardner)
His service to the new republic earned him his very own stamp, issued in 1975 (gotta love the title they gave him):
1/15/10
Right back at you Pete....
From the Dutch West India Company's reply:
"We would have liked to effectuate and fulfill your wishes and request...but after having further weighed and considered the matter, we observe that this would be somewhat unreasonable and unfair, especially because of the considerable loss sustained by this nation, with others, in the taking of Brazil, as also because of the large amount of capital which they still have invested in the shares of this company. ...[W]e have finally decided and resolved to apostille upon a certain petition presented by said Portuguese Jews that these people may travel and trade to and in New Netherland and live and remain there.... You will now govern yourself accordingly."
From The Jew In The Modern World, 2nd Ed., pg. 453.
"We would have liked to effectuate and fulfill your wishes and request...but after having further weighed and considered the matter, we observe that this would be somewhat unreasonable and unfair, especially because of the considerable loss sustained by this nation, with others, in the taking of Brazil, as also because of the large amount of capital which they still have invested in the shares of this company. ...[W]e have finally decided and resolved to apostille upon a certain petition presented by said Portuguese Jews that these people may travel and trade to and in New Netherland and live and remain there.... You will now govern yourself accordingly."
From The Jew In The Modern World, 2nd Ed., pg. 453.
Peter Stuyvesant to the Dutch West India Company, Sept. 22, 1654
"The Jews who have arrived would nearly all like to remain here, but learning that they (with their customary usury and deceitful trading with the Christians) were very repugnant to the inferior magistrates, as also to the people having the most affection to you...we have, for the benefit of this weak and newly developing place and the land in general, deemed it useful to require them in a friendly way to depart; praying...that the deceitful race...be not allowed to further infect and trouble this new colong to the detraction of your worships and the dissatisfaction of your worships' most affectionate subjects."
in The Jew in the Modern World, 2nd Ed., pg. 452.
in The Jew in the Modern World, 2nd Ed., pg. 452.
Maybe in a ship like this....?
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It is ON!
Welch's for Pesah? " Welch's Teams With Manischewitz in Battle Over Kosher Grape Juice " (NPR, 10/10/17)
