The Associated Press is running a story today that" thousands of Jews celebrate the nite before x-mas" by having "Matzo balls "PARTIES in six cities. The originator is quoted as saying that it is an important nite for jewish people to get together,party and "be proud they are Jewish"
X-mas is strictly a christian religious holiday.period!
Jews should respect their fellow Americans and not try to emulate or delegitimize their celebrations.It is a perfect time for Jewish co-workers to cover for their CHRISTIAN colleagues who wish to take off and celebrate.
Last nite ,we concluded eight days of Chanukah, which always falls out in the last month of the secular calender.There are enough reasons and opportunities for Jews to be proud of our history and traditions without selling ourselves out to crass assimilation and commercialism.
Much Jewish blood has been spilled over the ages as they tried to force us to observe non-Jewish holidays;let us not throw these memories out the window and voluntarily join the masses.
Both X-mas and New Years are religious holidays.This year Dec 31 is a fast day(the tenth of Teveth) .Anyone who knows even a small amount of history ,knows that New Years day- the eighth day after the X-mas holiday represents the brith (circumcision) of Jesus .Religious christians go to church for the holiday.We Jews should understand a holidays meaning, before we decide to celebrate.
In a similar vein, Halloween (all-Saints day) and Saint Valentines Day are religious in origin.
The airwaves have been bombarded with TV ads as to how anti-semitism is on the rise,Iran wants to destroy us,etc,and therefore save our people by joining ADL (anti-defamation league).
While it is true that Iran wishes to nuke us,and there has always been and will always be anti-semitism, in my opinion it is not the ADL that will save us,but Jewish education.
If all the money spent for TV ads,direct mail solicitations and dinners for the ADL,American Jewish Committee.American Jewish Congress,World Jewish Congress ,Bnai Brith and the Weisenthal Center were combined into one organization think of what might transpire.
Tens perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars in real estate,salaries and protection for high official,together with the above savings could be directed toward Day Schools and Yeshivoth.Thousands of scholarships could be given.Teachers pay and pensions could reach proper levels.Countless new schools could be built.
MOST IMPORTANTLY,ASSILITATION AND INTER-MARRIAGE WOULD DROP PRECIPITOUSLY.
Anti-semitism is not killing us,it is inter-marriage and assimilation.
In the Orthodox world the National Council of Young Israel and Religious Zionists should merge with The OU ,and Amit with Emunah .Similarly in the Conservative and Reform movements, their main bodies and their Zionists bodies should merge.
THERE ARE TOO MANY PEOPLE,COLLECTING TOO MANY SALARIES IN PERSUIT OF THE SAME GOALS.The Real winners from such mergers would be the AMERICAN JEWISH COMMUNITY.
Anti-semitism would be fought by the religious streams,AIPAC and this combined new entity,with the same vigor and results as we now witness.
