Grapevine: What’s on children’s minds

SEVERAL NEIGHBORHOODS have websites that inform residents about community services and events, but few are as clear and comprehensive as that of Har Nof.

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
Prayers at the Western Wall during Succot, 1997. Jews from all over Israel and around the world have converged upon Jerusalem to rejoice in the festival (photo credit: BRYAN MCBURNEY)
Prayers at the Western Wall during Succot, 1997. Jews from all over Israel and around the world have converged upon Jerusalem to rejoice in the festival
(photo credit: BRYAN MCBURNEY)
IT IS always interesting to discover what children think and what prompts their thinking. Eva Weiss has done this with a book called I Am Israeli: The Children of Israel, in which children talk about the Jewish state with far greater insight and sensitivity than many adults. The book will be launched on Tuesday, October 6, at 4 p.m. at the Tmol Shilshom restaurant in Nahlat Shiva.
SEVERAL NEIGHBORHOODS have websites that inform residents about community services and events, but few are as clear and comprehensive as that of Har Nof, which is a tremendous boon to English-speaking residents. It is called the Har Nof Information Gemach, and it is dedicated to the memory of Chaim Tzvi ben Reuven Markowitz, who was an exemplary, kind and considerate human being with a record brimming with good deeds on behalf of other people.
The website is managed by Gershon Markowitz, who invites surfers to let him know if a category in which they are interested is missing or if there is an error. The website lists health and dental services, with names and phone numbers of doctors and dentists, fitness centers, synagogues, schools, special education facilities, kindergartens, lectures, public transport, post offices, youth groups, police, arbiters of Jewish law, emergency phone numbers, loan societies, banks, consulates, alphabetically categorized commercial enterprises and much more. It’s a fantastic service for new immigrants or English-speaking newcomers to the neighborhood or veterans who are looking for something in particular.
GENDER ISSUES in Judaism are gaining impetus as increasing numbers of women are availing themselves of the numerous opportunities to improve their knowledge of all things Jewish.
Religious feminism is on the rise, and a good showing of women who believe that they should have a greater role in religious Jewish life are expected at the Wednesday, October 14 lecture by Miriam Kosman an international lecturer, writer and scholar on male-female roles and relationships in Judaism.
The author of Circle Arrow Spiral: Exploring Gender in Judaism, Kosman will speak on “The Eternal Dance between Man and Woman: Exploring Gender in Judaism.” The lecture, under the auspices of Layla, will be held at 8 p.m. at the OU Center, 22 Keren Hayesod Street, Jerusalem.