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The Latest Achievements, Honors, and Recognition March 2010
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Dear Friends,
It is with great pride that I inform you of the latest achievements and recognition garnered by the Academy and those affiliated with it. May we all get much nachas from these accomplishments and may the Academy and all of those associated with it continue to go from strength to strength.
Best regards,
Jacob Zighelboim, MD
Chairman, Board of Directors
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 On March 3rd, Cantor Nathan Lam, the Dean of AJR, CA's Cantorial School and the cantor of Stephen S. Wise Temple, the largest congregation in the world, will be at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC at the invitation of the Polish Ambassador. There, he will introduce "100 Voices," the documentary about the historic mission that he led in June 2009 which resulted in 100 Cantors returning to Poland, the birthplace of Cantorial music and the center of Cantorial music pre-Word War II. Cantor Lam is the founder and creative force behind this international initiative which was done in collaboration with the Cantors Assembly Foundation (of which he serves as president), the Cantors Assembly, the Polish Government and the Jewish Cultural Festival in Krakow. The March 3rd screening will be attended by the Ambassadors of Poland and Israel and will include a performance by the Cantors Chorale under Cantor Lam's leadership.
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Rabbi and Cantor Mark Goodman, '07 was featured in a Los Angeles Time s article, "Sun Valley temple gives the gift of trees." The piece, which ran in the February 1st issue, focused on Rabbi and Cantor Goodman's synagogue, Valley Beth Israel, and its celebration of Tu B'Shevat which included distributing fruit trees to dozens of families from the surrounding community. Noting the holiday's theme of renewal, the article noted that the Conservative synagogue itself had been revitalized "with the arrival of Goodman, whose energy and efforts to modernize services have attracted a new generation of younger families, including some Latinos, who are now the largest ethnic group in the surrounding community."
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Elihu Gevirtz, a third year Rabbinical student authored the article, "Who Owns and Who is Responsible for a Soul?: An Inquiry Based on Extrapolations of Exodus 22:6-14 and Bava Metzia 78b-83a," which appeared in the Winter/Spring 2010 issue of the Menorah Review, a Journal of Virginia Commonwealth University. He is also teaching an "Introduction to Judaism" course as well as a class in Talmud, both of which are being held at Congregation B'nai B'rith in Santa Barbara.
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Rabbi Steve Finley, '09 was featured in the January 30th issue of The Daily  News. The article, "Bat Mitzvah at last," detailed the Bat Mitzvah of four women residents (average age: 90) at the Westwood Horizons Retirement Residence. Rabbi Finley, the Rabbi of Westwood Horizons, provided the women with the months of instruction leading up to their bat mitzvah. The article quoted Rabbi Finley as saying that in addition to the age of his students, there was another aspect that made his teaching the women different from the usual bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah classes. "Every session began with, 'Rabbi, eat something!"' he said. "I've kind of gained four grandmothers - and I've gained five pounds."
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 Rabbi Min Kantrowitz, '04 was featured in two articles appearing in the February 2010 of The New Mexico Jewish Link, the state's only Jewish newspaper. Rabbi Kantrowitz authored "Helping One Family at a Time," detailing her work as Director of the Jewish Community Chaplaincy Program of Jewish Family Service of New Mexico. The second piece, "Book Guides Daily Meditative Practices," was a review of her recently published book, Counting the Omer: A Kabbalistic Meditation Guide. |
Rabbi Stan Levy, JD, Vice-Chair of AJR, CA's Board of Directors, and a Senior Attorney at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, was featured in the article, "Strength in Numbers," which appeared in the February 2010 issue of the ABA (American Bar Association) Journal. The article detailed the work of the Holocaust Survivors Justice Network of which Rabbi Levy is the Founding National Volunteer Director.
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 Jonathan Friedmann, a fifth year Cantorial student, had his article "Michal: Wife of King David," published in the January/February issue of Sacred History Magazine. The issue focused on the important role women have played in the history of world religions.
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Academy for Jewish Religion|CA
Yitzhak Rabin Hillel Center for Jewish Life at UCLA
574 Hilgard Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90024
phone: 310-824-1586 email: office@ajrca.org
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