jews

The Jerusalem Post confirms the Vanity Fair story.

October 19, 2007
Dear Friends,
In this months Vanity Fair magazine, there are two articles that I want
to
draw to your attention. One is entitled "The New Establishment, the 100
most
powerful, most influential people in American society." What is
absolutely
amazing about the article is that 51 out of the 100 are Jews. Wow! In a
country where we comprise a little more than 2% of the population, 51%
of
the listed "most influential" are Jewish.
The magazine also has a separate list of what it calls "The Next
Establishment" - younger people it believes are destined to make the
list
soon. Of the 26 on that list, 15 are Jewish! And it doesn't stop
there.
There is a list called the "Pit Stop Club." These are people who
haven't
made it, but will make a comeback soon. Nine names are on the list.
Only one
is not Jewish and that is Don Imus.

I don't bring this information to be haughty or triumphal, but rather
want
us to think about why. And will we continue to make great contributions
to
the world? On Shabbat I will talk more about this.

There is also another article. This one is called "Talk of the Town."
Its
the story of the intense competition between two of the most powerful
men on
Wall Street. Each one tries to outdo the other, top the other, and even
destroy the other. They are also both Jewish.

The article mentions the charities they support: museums, symphonies,
hospitals, universities, nothing for Jewish education or synagogues. I
see
something in the juxtaposition of these two articles. And what this
means
for the future of Jewish contribution to causes that matter, cultural
improvement, advancement in society, etc., etc.
The generation of Jewish genius which contributed to the world as Jews
first
emerged freely is now being realized. It comes from a culture that was
emerged in a value system and learning. We need to figure out how to
preserve that in a world that gives us freedom. We need to create
synagogues
and centers and institutions that people want to be in and to support
and
enjoy. That's our challenge to make this venture continue.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi David Steinhardt
Boca Raton, FL
This year Islam and Judaism's holiest holidays overlapped for 10 days.
Muslims racked up 397 dead bodies in 94 terror attacks across 10
countries
during this time... The Jews worked on their 159th Nobel Prize
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