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Golda’s Balcony

We saw Golda’s Balcony last night. Tovah Feldshuh stars as Golda Meir in this one-woman play. She also does the voices of all the other people including Dayan, Kissinger, her parents, etc. It was phenomenal!

Most memorable line is when Kissinger says “First I am an American. Second I am the Secretary of State. And last, I am a Jew.” Golda replies: “Good, in Israel we read from right to left!” This show certainly made me want to get on the next El Al flight to Israel. It’s a must see!!!

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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Happy Hanukkah to all my Friends and Family

Happy Hanukkah to all my Friends and FamilyI hope everyone’s Hanukkah is bright and joyous.

May this holiday season be a source of health, happiness, love, & prosperity to all of us!

Much Love, Jason

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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Did Madonna Get S’mikha Before Me??

Shmuley lets the Material Girl have it here. However, the most memorable line from the article has to do with Jacko. Shmuley writes, “It is no secret that I spent two years in close friendship with Michael Jackson which I now regard as one of the great mistakes of my life… But my embarrassment comes from my insecurity in believing that I needed a celebrity pairing in order to be an effective exponent of Judaism, and that the Jewish faith needed a celebrity spokesman in order to garner mainstream credibility.”Jason Miller and Adam Sandler on the set of Little Nicky(1999)

What kind of Jewish leader would ever get the idea of using a “celebrity pairing to be an effective exponent of Judaism”? –>

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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One View of the State of the Conservative Movement

Sociologist Marvin Schick takes out a paid ad in each week’s New York Jewish Week to publish his personal views. A few weeks ago, he wrote his assessment of the Conservative Movement. If you are interested in reading his views, click here to go to the essay.

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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JTS Torah

Senior Sermon

This Shabbat I delivered my Senior Sermon at The Jewish Theological Seminary. In the final year of Rabbinical School, each senior rabbinical student is given the opportunity to teach the Seminary community. This is considered to be one of the major milestones on the journey toward rabbinic ordination. On either a Friday evening or Saturday morning, the student presents a sermon based on that week’s Torah portion in the Women’s League Seminary Synagogue.

My sermon on Parshat Vayishlach entitled “Ya’akov Is Left Alone: Wrestling From Darkness to Hope” can be accessed here.

I hope that others will be inspired by my personal message and my Torah.

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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The Torah of Groundhog Day

I guess I never realized that Bill Murray’s 1993 movie “Groundhog Day” is such a religious resource. Today’s New York Times ran an article claiming that rabbis, priests, and Buddhist leaders all use the film in their sermons and classes.

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller
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Is Bush a Mentsch?

Is George W. Bush a mentsch?

From the Dallas Morning News

Thanksgiving Pilgrimage: Mensch in cowboy boots merits praise
A Fox News correspondent in Iraq said that when he told soldiers the commander in chief had been in Iraq for a Thanksgiving visit hours earlier, all the troops could say was, “Wow!” We know how they feel.

President Bush’s secret pilgrimage to the front took the entire world by surprise, even members of his own staff. He sneaked out of the White House in the dead of night, leaving in an unmarked car, and slipping onto Air Force One through the back door. Mr. Bush flew 13 hours to Iraq, landing under cover of darkness, with all the lights of the plane out, to make it less of a target for terrorist missiles.

That is, frankly, incredible. As the nation saw, Mr. Bush received an uproarious welcome from 600 shocked and awed soldiers. The troops cheered so forcefully they nearly brought the most powerful man in the world to tears. “I was just looking for a warm meal somewhere,” the president drawled. “Thanks for inviting me to dinner.” He went on to serve the Thanksgiving meal to Americans under arms far, far from home. This was a spectacular move by the president, whose visit was a tremendous morale booster for our troops, and sent a powerful message to the world that the United States is committed to finishing the job we started in Iraq.

Mr. Bush’s critics will inevitably complain that his surprise visit was a stunt designed to counteract poll numbers showing falling confidence in the way his administration is handling the Iraqi occupation. Granted, Mr. Bush will probably get a political boost out of this lightning trip, but those who reduce his gallant and courageous gesture to mere politics only diminish themselves. Any commander in chief, Republican or Democrat, who took this kind of risk to show solidarity with our soldiers on Thanksgiving would deserve unreserved praise and admiration.

There is a Yiddish expression to describe a man who acts this way: mensch. Leo Rosten defined it as “someone of substance, someone to emulate, someone of noble character.” George W. Bush of Texas showed yesterday what a mensch looks like in cowboy boots.

(c) Rabbi Jason Miller | http://blog.rabbijason.com | Twitter: @RabbiJason | facebook.com/rabbijasonmiller