4 New videos on youtube

Conservative Judaism JEwU 114
Selihote-penitential service prior to Rosh Hashanah JewU 123
Is there a Jewish language? JewU 124
Dumpster diving, sunken treasures and Judaism JewU125

Abbas calls hamas "Murderous terrorists" and still israel is the bad guy

Abbas of Fatah calles Hamas "murderous terrorists" and still many around the world blame Israel for the Palestinians not having a state. Palestinians can't even decide in a unified way whether to live with Israel or try and kill every jew there. Would Illinois talk statehood with Wisconsin if Wisconsiites were sending bombs to Skokie, and suicide bombers to Northbrook, while kiling other Wisconsinites because they weren't violent enough with Illinoisians? See how Israel rushes to give Abbas the benefit of the doubt, even though his hands are hardly clean. All israel has ever wanted is to live in peace with its neighbors.

Here is a sample of some negative feedback I get from my pro Israel youtubes:
1. "it is amazing that there are still people who call themselves sane,think that israel is anything less than a nazi state, implanted in the middle east to serve its masters. sad jews will pay the unlimate price for their own leaders faults."
2."Israel is a terrorist state.More and more people are realizing"
3."So you dont think stealing Palestinian land is shameful? You opress Palestine, you steal their land, you have tortured those people too long, you are disgusting. No wonder you are treated like dogs by the UN - as you should be...Shalom"
4."this man is either a complete idiot or he's been payd to say this nonsense "

Those are some of the nicer ones. I delete many of the very awful ones. On balance, most are much more positive about Israel.
Here's an interesting one
"Excellent points.(Apart from the one with God promising stuff, which is irrelevant because God doesn't exist.) "

Water + us parasha notes

This week's parasha has the famous water from the rock story. Rabbi Shapira of Lublin compares water to b'nai yisrael. He speaks of how powerful water is, how it can move mountains, flood plains, etc. etc. but he says that's only when it is liquid. If it is frozen, it doesn't accomplish anything. Similarly B'nai Yisrael, when they are enthusiastic and flowing, they can do anything, but when they are frozen and apathetic, they cannot do a thing.

Isaiah says :all who are thirsty. come and drink. Water= Torah there.


Miriam dies in this parasha and the water dries up. The sages said Israel had water in the desert because of her merit

Heschel-Judaism teaches...

Gail was reading Heschel's book Man is Not Alone-a Philosophy of religion and pointed out this quote
Judasim teaches us to be content with what we have, but never with what we are. But most of us are unhappy because we are discontent with what we possess, not because we are discontent with what we are."

Jerusalem is the only capital in the world not recognized by the US

JONNY PAUL, Jerusalem Post correspondent, THE JERUSALEM POST Jun. 15,2007____________________________________The BBC apologized this week for referring to Jerusalem as Israel's capital,and promised not to repeat "the mistake," following a complaint by fourBritish organizations.Arab Media Watch, Muslim Public Affairs Committee, Friends of Al-Aksa and the Institute of Islamic Political Thought sent a joint complaint to the BBCafter a presenter on its Football Focus program on March 24 mentioned thatJerusalem was Israel's capital and "historic soul."The BBC's Editorial Complaints Unit posted a response on its Web site: "Thereference was a passing one in a context where the focus was on sport, notpolitics. While recognizing the sensitivity of the issue of the status ofJerusalem, the ECU took the view that the program-makers had taken sufficientaction by acknowledging the error and rectifying the Web site."

go to this site and watch all 3 brief videos

What Really Happened In The Middle Eastis the third video in a series that has been produced and developed by the Freedom Center. The Islamic Mein Kampf and What Every American Needs to Know About Jihad were issued earlier this year and have been distributed to more than two and a half million individuals. All three are available for downloading at http://terrorismawareness.org/ .

3 new videos

What are the basics of Judaism? JewU 120
What does God really want from us? JewU 121
What is a mitzvah? Is it a good deed? JewU 122

6 new videos uploaded on youtube

New videos uploaded
Raising Children to be Jewish -2 JewU 115
Soprano's end and a Rabbi responds- no ending Jew 116
Great Jews series Abraham Joshua Heschel 100 years JEwU 117
Great Jews series Maimonides Rambam JEwU 118
Reform Judaism Strength and Challenges JewU 119
Orthodox Judaism strengths and challenges JewU 120

Parashas of the week video through July 9

Video dvar Torah for this Shabbat
Parasha of the week videoTorah Portion Korach -Debate ok?

Video dvar for week of June 17 Hukkat
Torah portion Parah /Hukkat JewU 7

Video dvar for week of June 24
Torah portion Balak-May tovu How goodly thy tents JewU 51

Video dvar for week of July 1 Pinhas
Torah Portion Pinhas dvar Torah JewU 50

Hamas and Fatah battle it out

Hamas and Fatah are killing each other in Gaza. Apparently Hamas has won in Gaza. Militant Islam is on the march. Hezbollah in Lebanon, Al Quaida all over, Hamas in Gaza, Islamic Jihad. Much of this financed and organized by Iran. Shiites and sunnis mkilling each other in Iraq. Arabs rapiong and mass murdering in Darfur. How exactly is Israel the most terrorist violent nation, according to so many? Its a crazy world.

YOUTUBE VIDEOS RABBI G. just click on the link below and it will take you to it.

or go to youtube and search JEWU and they all will show up
UNDERSTANDING THE JEWISH PEOPLE
Understanding Jewish talk, terms usage
Jewish Spirituality-Five models
The Jewish Star as a teaching tool
Cohenim Priests In Judaism
Hasidim 101
Jewish Denominations Movements
Jewish history Abraham to Hannukah

Jews and others
Jews and Evangelical Christians
Anti-Semitism-a brief history
Converting to Judaism
Jews and Jesus
Great Jews series Maimonides Rambam JEwU 118
Great Jews series Abraham Joshua Heschel 100 years JEwU 117

Sabbath and Holiday videos
Jewish understanding of TIME
Origins of Jewish holidays
Shabbat-an introduction
Sabbath Kiddush sanctification and havdalah ceremonies chant
Rosh Hashanah Jewish New year
Shofar-Ram's horn
Yom Kippur Jewish Atonement Day
Sukkot and Simhat Torah
Seder Plate Basics for Passover
Passover Haggadah explained briefly
Passover joke: Why is this night Passover song
Passover song Haggadya the little goat explained
The 4 Passover questions in Yiddish
Omer-the 49 day period between Passover and Shavuot
Holocaust 2007 Shoah

audio sermon on Holocaust observance
http://www.4shared.com/file/15511919/756fc040/_holocaust_sermon.html
Lag Baomer 33rd day Holiday in the midst of sadness
The Festival of Shavuot First fruits Hag Habikorim
Cicadas, Shavuot, Memorial day and Ruth's conversion
Tisha bAV Ninth of Av saddest day in Jewish year
Hannukah The real story
Hannukah songs and blessings sung Purim the true story

Synagogue, Prayer , Ritual items
Origin of Yizkor memorial service
Jewish ritual home items Mezuza-what is that box on a Jewish home?
Jewish Kippot, Yarmulkes, head Coverings
Shaharit-the Jewish morning Prayer service
Minha The Jewish Afternoon Prayer service
Jewish prayer service-Maariv/Evening
The Shem-Hear O Israel the Lord our God the Lord is One
Torah Aliyah Honors 101
Jewish prayer shawl Tallit Tallis 101
Sacrifices and Judaism

Lifecycle and Kashrut related videos
Bris Milah and Jewish Baby namings
Raising Children to be Jewish
Raising Children to be Jewish -2 JewU 115
Jewish Marriage Ceremony
Jewish Divorce
Jewish Funeral Practices 101
Kosher 101

SACRED TEXTS and ideas related videos
Judaism: Learn, Live, Love-the spiritual essence
What Jews believe
Jewish view of the Messiah and Messianic era
Resurrection from a Jewish perspective
Repentance-Teshuva in Judaism
Ten Commandments
Jewish Denominations Movements
Orthodox Judaism strengths and challenges
Reform Judaism Strength and Challenges JewU 119
Mishnah Gemarah Talmud 101
Hebrew Bible introduction
God and the Holocaust-evil
Jewish Values 1-3
Jewish Values 4-6
Jewish Values 7-9
Jewish values 10-14
Jewish Values 15-21
Jewish Values 22-27
Jewish values 28 on
Creationism Evolution A Jewish View

Attempts at humor
Favorite Jewish Jokes one
Favorite Jewish jokes number two
My favorite Jewish jokes three
Purim Homintaschen vs. Hannukah Latke debate
Passover joke: Why is this night

SOCIETAL ISSUES
Earth Day and Judaism Environmental concerns
Euthanasia Mercy Killing from a Jewish view
Capital Punisment Death Penalty from a Jewish View
Abortion from a Jewish perspective
Tattooing and Piercing in Jewish Tradition
Creationism Evolution A Jewish View

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE
100 Q's Jews Should Know -1 Bible
100 Q's Jews Should Know -2-Synagogue and prayer
100 Q's Jews Should Know -3 Home
100 Q's Jews Should Know -4 Sabbath and Holidays Home
100 Q's Jews Should Know -5 Sukkot and Passover
100 Q's Jews Should Know -6 Minor Holiday and High Holidays
100 Q's Jews Should Know -6 Minor Holiday and High Holidays
100 Q's Jews Should Know -7 Jewish Life
100 Q's Jews Should Know -8 Jewish belief
100 Q's Jews Should Know -9 History
100 Q's Jews Should Know -10 Israel
Memorization videos for Conversion Class
Memorization exercises for conversion class 1-9
Memorization exercises for conversion class 10-16


DAILY SERMONETTS
A Rabbi's Daily Thought-TV, Bible and Whales-6/4/07
Soprano's end and a Rabbi responds-it no ending Jew 116

My videos about Israel on youtube

My videos about Israel
Israel's 59th birthday Happy birthday
Palestinian Refugees "return" wrongIsrael: the greatest country
What can we personally do to help Israel
It's Not Israel's Fault
AIPAC Crucial for America and the World
Refuting Kristof's March 17 NYT piece on Israel
What's Wrong with Jimmy Carter's Book?
Shameful British Boycott

2 thoughts for today 1.voice from the ground and Sopranos no end

Parasha of the week video
Torah Portion Korach -Debate ok?



What does the ground say to us? Midrash from this week. Ater the Korah rebellion vs. Moses and Aaron fails, and Korah and his cohort are swallowed by an earthquake-. Rabbah bar bar Ḥana narrates that while he was traveling in the desert, an Arab showed him the place of Korah's engulfment. There was at the spot a slit in the ground into which he introduced some wool soaked in water. The wool became parched. On placing his ear to the slit, he heard voices cry: "Moses and his Torah are true; and we are liars" (B. B. 74a; comp. Tan., ed. Buber, Ḳoraḥ, Supplement). S. S. M. Sel

Reminds us of the Cain story, after killing Abel and he tries to hide, the Torah states: of .
8 Cain said to Abel his brother, "Let us go out to the field." And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and killed him. 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?" 10 And the LORD said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. 11 And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

This week, there are reports of mass graves of Jews found in Ukraine of Nazi victims by pipe diggers. They assume there are many unfound mass graves of Jews there. Also, there is a story of Gusen Austria town built on Gusen forced labor camp where 37000 died -important plant for Messerschmidt project there. Inaddition, Kurt Waldheim died, past UN l Secretary General and Austrian president who was a nazi officer and knew well of atrocities.
Victims everywhere: Darfur, Iraq, dozens of nations-there blood cries from the ground.

When will the world listen to the voices coming from the ground?


2. The Sopranos lack of ending-awful show-appeals to lowest common denominator in the guise of art, but was watched by millions. It si the subject of much talk now because evidently it did not really end. Its lack of clear finish frustrated many. We kept waiting for resoution, but none came. We'll never know what happened. Others that did not end: Gone with the Wind, Great Expectations, Waitng For Godot (never find out if the is meaning to life) etc. Lesson-There is no ending till Messianic era. Don't expect neat resolutions. Its the journey. Keep battling for holiness in our lives and the world-for God and Torah.

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Our Conservative Conversion program ONLINE and Skokie

Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg, a graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary (Conservative Judaism), a member of the Rabbinical Assembly of America (Conservative Judaism) and an associate member of the Reconstructionist Rabbbinic Association, directs the conversion Bet Din program. There are two programs 1.It is an ONLINE, INTERNET Based program, utlizing his 350 videos, podcasts, readings, emails, phone conversions, and follows the same curriculum as their Chicago based bricks and mortars program. 2. A 16 week conversion to Judaism program which meets in Chicago (Skokkie)

Why a blog

Why a blog?

I hope to share my Torah thoughts, and views of the world to anyone who wishes to read

Lnow about

www.longdistancejewishconversion.blogspot.com/

Who Am I

Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg, Rabbi of the Ezra-Habonim, Niles Township Jewish Congregation of Skokie, is a native of Chicago. Rabbi Ginsburg received his B.A. in religion from the University of Chicago where he was the valedictory orator and received his Masters and Rabbinic Ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary where he received the Krasne Award for outstanding student. He was a National Merit scholar and 1974 National High School Debate Champion. Rabbi Ginsburg, before returning to Chicago, he was the senior Rabbi at the Temple of Aaron, a 1400-family Conservative synagogue for 17 years, and adjunct faculty of St. Catherine College and Metropolitan University. Prior to that, he served as senior Rabbi at the Kane street Synagogue in Brooklyn for 5 years. He is now President of the Niles Township Clergy Association.