Steven Stein
Welcome to our 10th edition of Schmooze. As we race between Thanksgiving and the year’s end, we try to get as many of our unfinished tasks completed as possible in order to start the New Year fresh. In that light, we wish everyone a very happy Hanukkah and hopefully by the end of the year, all the hostages will have been returned.
In this issue, I include a whimsical article I wrote while on a recent flight to Israel. It’s about Superman and the theme of the most recent movie he’s featured in. Excuse the literary excess, but after not getting much sleep on the flight, it kept me engaged.
One of the challenges of an organization like AJP is serving a constituency with such a wide array of interests, challenges, points of view, etc. As a Jewish organization, we’re always quick to make recommendations (criticize?), add new priorities, ask questions, and generally give our two cents. Well, in anticipation of this, we had our team carry out a membership survey. Who are we, what do we want, etc.? This was your chance to be heard and shape the direction of AJP. You can read about it here.
Our Executive Board member and Treasurer, Lenore Walker, was recently honored and chosen as one of 150 delegates worldwide to map out Israel’s (and diaspora Jewry’s) future. No small task. She got to hobnob with President Herzog and some really top-notch people from around the world. Her article follows.
Daniel Balva submitted an article (also published in Times of Israel) outlining some of the antisemitic disinformation being spread through academic, and mental health publications. It’s important to document and make people aware of the misinformation that is being spread.
At the recent AJP commemoration of the October 7 massacre, Sarah Friedman, a member of our Executive Board and leader of the Research Committee, made some comments that moved a number of our members. She was asked if her words could be documented and shared with more of our members. You’ll find them in this newsletter.
I received a book review of one of our members’ recent (or revised) books, The Twin Children of the Holocaust by Nancy Segal. The book should be of interest to psychologists, Holocaust educators, and many others. It’s important to remember difficult times from our past and the resilience of the Jewish people in the face of the worst horrors. Unfortunately, there are lessons we still need to learn about surviving evil.
Please continue sending in items of interest for our members.
Wishing everyone a Happy Hanukkah.
