I guess I'm just jealous beacuse all I could afford was a three bedroom house between Route 4 and Cedar Lane. I have some trees here. I like the shade. Guess up in West Englewood, with all the McMansions and no land between houses you've forgotten what they're like. Come down and visit us sometime. Down here in the fall, we have to rake leaves. You guys had to do that a few years back until the wonderful powers that be in town let you knock down all the trees to build those eight bedroom monstrosities (is that a word?). And here, some streets have these large concrete squares in front of the houses which you can walk on, even on Saturdays. They're even good for pushing strollers and staying out of traffic. Face it, the West Englewood crowd and the rest of Teaneck, orthodox or not, are living in two different towns. It's not the orthodox and the others - it's the West Englewood orthodox and the others!
Envy is ugly. What does that make you? A miese neshoma as well as an am haaretz. But you don't know what that means because you in fact are the "faux orthodox".
While I enjoy fiction, I suggest you figure out why it is that you enjoy creating demonstrable straw-men (i.e. Mayor Katz) to rationalize your hatred for them. I often enjoy listening to the conspiracy theories and mock conversations that come out of the 'crew of disruption'. Everything is over analyzed, and jumps to ridiculous assumptions are more frequent than Journeyman (Quantum Leap for the 80's crowd). Let's chill out and focus on the real world a little bit.
Look at the numbers. The West Englewood area voted one way, the rest of town voted quite a bit differently. Other than in the northeast and the far southeast and southwest, this town is ripe with orthodox jews. Only one neighborhood (where the oft-mentioned Rabbi has his pulpit)fell for the Hameeduddin/Robinson crap. The rest of town made their own educated choices (at least I hope they did).
Scene III (Susan Rosenbluth's office at the Jewish Voice and Opinion. Susan and Sharon Hes are meeting with Rabbi P., Elie and Yitz).
Susan: Rabbi, Elie, Yitz. Nice to see you. I guess we need to regroup.
Sharon: You know I used to live in Teaneck before I split up with my husband. I am now living with someone else.
Rabbi: Sharon -- that's ok. You are a die hard Republican so I can overlook your disgressions.
Sharon: And I hate Cramer, Schwart and Toffler more than anyone else. Well, maybe I hate Harris more.
Rabbi: We neutralized Harris after the last election.
Elie: Susan. Allow me to thank you for all of your hard work in supporting Team Teaneck. I know it was hard coming up with the dirt on Toffler but we got the Teaneck Truth blog to help out.
Susan: Yes. They are good. They did a good job making up that ethical lapse b.s. (pardon the French, Rabbi).
Sharon: Toffler is one of those ivy league liberals that believes in pluralism and all that garbage.
Susan: Sharon, you've been listening too much to Limbaugh.
Sharon: He's way too liberal for me.
Susan: Well, what can we do for you guys.
Rabbi: We need to demonize Cramer.
Susan: That shouldn't be hard. He's been living in Teaneck a long time. We can dredge up all the old reports from the newspapers about his opposition to the community. And whatever isn't there, we can just make it up.
Yitz: Remember Cramer was the township lawyer once upon a time. He actually allowed for certain of our concerns to pass.
Susan: Don't worry. Remember 1984 (the book).
Elie: The what?
Rabbi: Elie's just pretending to be Rudolph. I am sure his read that Orwellian masterpiece.
Elie: Yeah. Like Rabbi P. says.
Yitz: I've read it. But how does it apply here.
Susan: Whenever the facts conflict with the version of history we like, we just change the facts.
Elie: I noticed that in other articles I've read in your newspaper.
Susan: Cramer's an easy target. We will get right to it.
Saul Bellow wrote in "To Jerusalem and Back" about how his lefty friends sat in the City College cafeteria trying to figure out all the complexities of Stalin's and Hitler's thoughts. Of course what they later discovered was how much more complicated their analyses were than the realities that had been going on in the Dictators' minds.
Cramer and Schwartz misconstrue in line with their desires. A simple mistake of voting in Brooklyn while accompanying his ill mother (uncovered thanks to the work of a paid opposition research expert)became, in their feverish leftist minds, Rudolph's "felony of the twenty-first century".
Also, the shameless bacon-craving that only Louie's Charcoal Pit can satisfy, keeps motivating their ancient rebellion against the faith of their ancestors.
with all the McMansions and no land between houses you've forgotten what they're like.
No land between houses? Are you blind? Seriously, have you been to any of the 5 boroughs? That is no land... I think that 20 feet minimum is not "no land". Please explain what you mean. What I find funny is how the northeast section of Teaneck seems to have even less land between homes than the "McMansions" do.
See, as the conversation comes out, we can tell who and what these anonymous posters are all about.
Glad to hear the "1984" reference. It reminds me about Big Witch Toffler's "ethical stealing" of hundreds of thousands of dollars ("I did it for the money") and how it was transformed by her into "ethical conduct". That went on for four full years in between all her rejections by various colleges. (You didn't think anybody would have offered her tenure, did you?)
Following in Harold's footsteps, here is a new instalment in the Teaneck Saga.
The setting is Goodies at about 8:30 p.m. Teh food has been served. Elie and Rabbi P lean into each other.
Elie: I’ve been getting calls all day, rabbi. Our people are restless and unhappy. Some saying we’ve duped them. Others are less kind. We need to think of something to do.
Rabbi P: Don’t worry about the people. People are sheep. We haven’t gotten this far by worrying about what the people think. They just need a diversion, and it’s our job to provide them with one.
Elie: Do you have something in mind?
Rabbi P: What we need to do is organize a public conversion of Hamedudin. That will take care of everything.
Elie: What a super idea. That’s why you’re the brains of this operation. Do you think it can be done?
Rabbi P: Why not? The Pope just did it. Converted a Muslim, that is. Why can’t I? Just think about it, we announce on TeaneckShuls that Hame-what’s-his-name has seen the light and decided to become one of us. Then we have him paraded all over town from shul to shul in a yarmulke. By the time we’re done with him, he’ll be offered the presidency in some shul. In fact, I have one in mind. What’s the name of that Feldman shul on Queen Anne? Don’t they need a president?
Elie: Etz Chaim, I think, but they’re having some problems with that addition of theirs.
Rabbi P. Yeah, that’s right, I know. We need to deal with that. But anyway, this is what I’m thinking.
Elie: Have you broached the subject with Mohammad?
Rabbi P: Who?
Elie: Hameduddin.
Rabbi P: Oh, his name is Mohammad? Didn’t know that. That’s not too good a name for the conversion. Might give some people bad vibes. But what’s in a name? A Muslim by any other name is still a Mohammad. We just need to make the whole thing believable.
Elie: So have you spoken to him?
Rabbi P: No, no. I need to think of the way to sell it to him.
Elie: How about the presidency of your shul? You’ve wanted to replace your president for a while, haven’t you? Plus, it would take care of all the talk about you being intolerant and all.
Same as Robinson wearing a head covering more often than Rudolph. In every picture I saw of Rudolph, he wasn't wearing a head covering. And in the one mailing he sends out exclusively to Jewish community, is the same one picture I have ever seen him wear a yarmulka in!! That sums up all you need to know about that man! I would love to see what he is doing right now...
Just 20 feet between palatial estates in a low density (their word) suburb? The northeast area is urban, baby! And the houses are a lot smaller. West Englewood looks a little ridiculous. Nowhere else in the world do you see such huge houses on so little land.
Same as Robinson wearing a head covering more often than Rudolph. In every picture I saw of Rudolph, he wasn't wearing a head covering. And in the one mailing he sends out exclusively to Jewish community, is the same one picture I have ever seen him wear a yarmulka in!! That sums up all you need to know about that man! I would love to see what he is doing right now...
I noticed that as well. Alot of people at shul were wondering why Rudolph doesn't wear his yarmulke in public, especially at council meetings. Very typical that in the mailing sent primarily to Orthodox residents, he proudly wears one.
"All of us at bnai yeshurun need to ask Rabbi P to explain exactly what happened. we did as we were told, and we end up with Hameedudin!!! this is just unbelievable."
We want to help you. You can again become a community of sentient, functioning adults who think autonomously. I know this is hard and it hurts to see the emperor with no clothes on, but please please please try to put two and two together here. You, and we, will all be the better for it.
Yitz and Rabbi P.'s politics has nothing to do with them being Orthodox. They are right wing Republicans. Some in the community agree with them. But a lot of people don't and some are actually completely the opposite.
Get it straight. The attacks on the Orthodox community and its representatives were non-stop over the last two years (and in Cramer's case thirty-two years).
Rabbi Pruzansky has nothing to do with the huge vote in the Orthodox election districts against Toffler and Honis.
They both ought to start with apologies if they want Teaneck to function smoothly.
The people understand who their friends and enemies are.
Get it straight. The attacks on the Orthodox community and its representatives were non-stop over the last two years (and in Cramer's case thirty-two years).
Rabbi Pruzansky has nothing to do with the huge vote in the Orthodox election districts against Toffler and Honis.
They both ought to start with apologies if they want Teaneck to function smoothly.
The people understand who their friends and enemies are.
Of course, since Monica dreaded going back to Council if it had a Team teaneck majority (which it still has), she could refuse her seat in the "gas chamber".
the problem with Pruzansky is not that he got the orthodox to vote against Taffler and Honis. They won. The problem is that he got hem to vote for Hameduddin, and HE won.
Yitz works for Boss Joe Ferriero as does Elnata and Robinson (two of the Team Teaneck candiates). It's really Boss Joe who ran the Team Teaneck campaign. My sense is Cramer and gang are really most opposed to Boss Joe than they are to fighting the Orthodox. Many of these people live with and are friends of Orthodox Jews in town. Boss Joe doesn't live here and doesn't care that we are at each other's throats. Figure it out guys.
What is the eruv lie? Is the illegal synagogue the same group that took Rabbi Feldman away from the mechitza minyan at the Teaneck Jewish Center? I heard some families who went there now don't have a place to daven. Is that true?
Last election (2006) the Jewish Voice and Opinion spun a lie that the New Beginnings group wanted the eruv to be taken down. It was not true but that didn't stop the JV&O from publishing it then and again this year.
I think the new synagogue on the South side of town did take Rabbi Feldman away from the Mechitza Minyan.
The group that now meets at 554 QA is the same group that took Rabbi Feldman from the Merkaz minyan (aka the mechitza minyan). I checked with 2 people I know who used to go there. I am going to call some other people I know to try find out more.
My contacts also told me that of the entire merkaz minyan, only about 5 or 6 familes followed Rabbi Feldman to the new shul called Etz Chaim. The interesting thing that I was told is that the 5-6 familes were all part of the Arzei Darom "mini-exodus." It seems that they left Arzei, came to the Merkaz Minyan, took the Rabbi and started something new.
yes, anon 10:07, it is pretty bad. Some go to the Young Israel, some to Beth Aaron, I have even heard that some have not been going anywhere regularly and they are just bouncing around in a sort of spriritual limbo.
Anon 10:10 am: that's a pretty stupid comment. They USED to go to the Young Israel which means they LEFT the Young Israel. Chances are they werent happy there. You suggest that they just go back. What a chutzpa!
yes, anon 10:07, it is pretty bad. Some go to the Young Israel, some to Beth Aaron, I have even heard that some have not been going anywhere regularly and they are just bouncing around in a sort of spriritual limbo.
Rabbi Feldman did NOT build up the mechitza minyan. The minyan existed long before he arrived. He was instrumental in making it the success it was, but there were many people who paved the way to ensure that he was in a protected environment so he could do work there. I reiterate: Rabbi Feldman did NOT build that minyan.
I heard from my friend who goes to Beth Aaron that Rabbi Feldman ditched the mechitza minyan for a group that left Arzei Darom. He said many of the mechitza minyan people now don't have a place to daven. Ouch.
There is always a place to Daven. There is no reason that people who are unhappy cannot come to the Young Israel. We have a great shul with people from all walks of life. And we even have a Hashkama Hot Kiddush every week. C'mon down!
Zev, it aint that simple. People leave shuls for many different reasons: they don't feel comfortable there, they are not of the same hashkafa as the Rabbi etc etc. Please do not make light of the difficulty a person may feel going back to a shul. In YOUR opinion they Young Israel is a great place; I assume you know that some people consider it like a high school and dont like it.
ill bet anyone that within the next 2 years.. we will see requests for budget increases and a spike in taxes.. with Ms. Gas Chamber in play, we should see her voting down anything that brings money into the town that would heaven forbid lighten our tax burden.
Hameeduddin is in, and we can only wait to see how effective he is in pulling in the spending of Ms. Gaschamber.. but as he is alone it pretty much like sending him to be hung on a tree.. and by hung on a tree im referring to a pinata, where he is bludgeoned to death by blindfolded children..
i said that comment knowing 93% of people would turn that comment around.. but you 7% and you know who you are.. come get some lovin
like sending him to be hung on a tree.. and by hung on a tree im referring to a pinata
Of course you did. Humans are hanged, not hung.
I would like to thank you for trying to avoid exacerbating the situation and attempting to raise the level of discourse on the blog and I look forward to seeing you at council meetings.
I would like to thank you for the grammar lesson.. and will be cautious when using an indelicate adjectival form of the word.. i will also continue to avoid dangling my participle.
After reading the last 20.. no 100 messages on this board.. i think i actually did raise the bar if this blog.. infact, i could have pasted a link to William Hanged err.. Hung and it would still be a massive improvement.. PS. I loved high school.. go Cleveland Heights High tigers.!! if you can find me a shul that has a decent football team.. please let me know.
Bob: people from the mechitza minyan begged Rabbi Feldman not to go with this group to form Etz Chaim. There are emails from a lot of members of Merkaz to Rabbi Feldman that said it would be a huge mistake for him to go because of the issues on the south side of Cedar Lane. But he went anyway.
The entire Jewish community is like High School. Just read this blog. Rumors, he said, she said, my friends, your friends. Hell, that is half of Jackie Mason's act. You walk out of any Shul in town, and people will be making L"H comments about what one person is wearing, who their sister is married to, what the Rabbi said, how your stocks did this week. Go to any Shul dinner and you will see cliques. These are all common traits, unfortunately. But it is naive to say that this doesn't occur in almost every shul.
Granted, when any Shul has a contingency of younger members, there is a higher likelihood of occurrence. But that is why, as in any shul, or in the workplace, you choose your friends wisely. ---
As far as the hashkafa of the Rabbi, I don't buy that argument. I go to shul to Daven, to have a place for my children to learn and be a part of the community, to be around our friends and extended family, and because it is close. I may or may not agree with the Rabbi of a shul, but as far as the main reason for going to the particular shul, the Rabbi shouldn't be the main draw.
It happens to be that I love Rabbi Weinberger (Young Israel), and he is great for my family, but I think that out of the hours a week of regular attendance, how much of a shul experience is the speech? During the week, many people daven near work or at other shuls. Many people already have a Rav from wherever they were born or went to school. So, while people flock TO shuls because of a Rabbi, not to deminish the importance of that role, a Rabbi shouldn't be the reason why someone DOESN'T go to a shul. Thank G-d, in Teaneck, our shuls have many minyanim. If it was a question of not liking a Rabbi, and you were "spiritually wandering" with the choice of not going at all, I am sure you can find a minyan that would suit you fine. I think this is an excuse to hold grudges or use some warped sense of principal to validate a cantankerous attitude. There are plenty of shuls and minyanim within. There is no reason you cannot find a place to hang your hat. In every environment there are people who are difficult, unfriendly, judgmental, or rude. The small groups of Jock / Cheerleader personality-type exists in every community. Accept that and move on.
People are looking for perfection, and while I applaud the desire for it and hope that they become active in the shul to make that happen, using the lack of perfection as a reason NOT to attend makes no sense. The best way to improve something is to improve it from within. Simply sitting on the sidelines and complaining, or refusing to participate entirely, is very easy to do but accomplishes little.
Chaim: a bit of history - all the Merkaz people (including the arzei faction, although as you read you will be able to ask if the arzei people were really working with or against everyone)were working as a group to find a central location near the Jewish Center that would service as many people from the original minyan as possible. A house was found which "apparently" fell through and then within a matter of days the arzei faction found a new house, didn't even invite merkaz families to see it, made an offer and left 30 families without a shul. All this with the Rabbi's knowledge and blessing. The merkaz group excluding the arzei faction were blindsided by this and were informed at a meeting by the Rabbi that this was the way it was going to be, sorry but that's it.
Now let's talk a little bit about the funds that were raised for this building that the Rabbi calls his new home. The merkaz minyan changed its name to Torat Chesed while at Care One. (The leaders of Torat Chesed happened to coincedentally be mainly from the arzei faction.) These leaders collected funds to pay the Rabbi but part of the funds were going to a 'building fund' for a new shul, whereever that would ultimately be. Then the announcements started changing to include a very slight and almost unnoticeable change in name from ToraT Chesed to ToraS Chesed. You may argue that it is nothing more than T vs S semantics. and the leaders blew it off as just that. Well, look at the public records: a corporation called ToraS Chesed was established and inlcuded the names of at least 2 of the leaders of the minyan. All under the radar without anyone realizing it.
Let that digest and we will talk some more about exactly where the rabbi made his new home.
We should all be embarrased to be called Orthodox Jews.. What happened to "Love your Neighbor", obviously we do not practice that Mitzvah in Teaneck....Now I know why Moshiach will not come..Hate..Hate ,,Hate.. I am Orthodox and Frum From Birth and I am sick and tired of all this Jew Against Jew Crap..We will all become known in this Township as Self Hating Jews and that includes Reform, Conservative and Orthodox..Wake up and do Teshuvah with your fellow Jew.. and love others that are not Jews as well as long as they Treat you with Kindness and Sincerity. I am truly embarrased at what we have become..Hate from the Non Orthodox and Hate from the Orthodox. When will this all END !!!!!!!
when I said that Young Israel was like high school, I was referring to the pervasive rumors about the proclivities of certain members to boink their friends' wives. Heard anything about that, Zev? Just the environment I would want to raise my children in.
@joey Didn't know that people had wives in high school. Hmm. As far as issues that go on in communities, I have heard stories from just about every Shul in Teaneck and Bergenfield. So which Shul in town is filled with perfect people? Every community has issues, what does that have to do with high school?
Amen. I agree wholeheartedly with your statement. The L"H has to stop. I include myself in this, and if I have personally offended anyone, I apologize. Let's focus any personal anger inward and push forward in a productive way. We can disagree without being disagreeable.
268 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 268 of 268Looks like Schwartz is really flipping his wig here.
Such high quality fictional dialogue. First class fantasy. Right up there with Falstaff imagining how a king speaks.
Where's the show going to open? Lawrence, Beirut, St. Mark's, Rhodda Center?
Harold -- Rabbi P as Don Corleone. I love that. He certainly has the girth. But none of Brando's charm.
i don't know who this guy Schwartz is, but if Harold is him: may the schwartz be with you!
I guess I'm just jealous beacuse all I could afford was a three bedroom house between Route 4 and Cedar Lane.
I have some trees here. I like the shade. Guess up in West Englewood, with all the McMansions and no land between houses you've forgotten what they're like. Come down and visit us sometime. Down here in the fall, we have to rake leaves. You guys had to do that a few years back until the wonderful powers that be in town let you knock down all the trees to build those eight bedroom monstrosities (is that a word?).
And here, some streets have these large concrete squares in front of the houses which you can walk on, even on Saturdays. They're even good for pushing strollers and staying out of traffic.
Face it, the West Englewood crowd and the rest of Teaneck, orthodox or not, are living in two different towns.
It's not the orthodox and the others - it's the West Englewood orthodox and the others!
Couldn't find "faux-orthodox" in the O.E.D.
Sure you can claim a real education?
You are a total am haaretz.
Faux (pronounced /ˈfoʊ/, like "foe") is a French word for false or fake. It is often used in English phrases such as faux pearls and faux fur.
Ah, so envy is the pretty force behind the anti-Semitism in Teaneck.
I think I have seen this movie play out elsewhere.
No wonder West Englewood votes the way it does.
Ah, there you go again--furs, pearls.
Envy is ugly. What does that make you? A miese neshoma as well as an am haaretz. But you don't know what that means because you in fact are the "faux orthodox".
@Harold
While I enjoy fiction, I suggest you figure out why it is that you enjoy creating demonstrable straw-men (i.e. Mayor Katz) to rationalize your hatred for them. I often enjoy listening to the conspiracy theories and mock conversations that come out of the 'crew of disruption'. Everything is over analyzed, and jumps to ridiculous assumptions are more frequent than Journeyman (Quantum Leap for the 80's crowd). Let's chill out and focus on the real world a little bit.
(i.e. Mayor Katz)
e.g., perhaps?
Look at the numbers. The West Englewood area voted one way, the rest of town voted quite a bit differently. Other than in the northeast and the far southeast and southwest, this town is ripe with orthodox jews.
Only one neighborhood (where the oft-mentioned Rabbi has his pulpit)fell for the Hameeduddin/Robinson crap. The rest of town made their own educated choices (at least I hope they did).
Scene III (Susan Rosenbluth's office at the Jewish Voice and Opinion. Susan and Sharon Hes are meeting with Rabbi P., Elie and Yitz).
Susan: Rabbi, Elie, Yitz. Nice to see you. I guess we need to regroup.
Sharon: You know I used to live in Teaneck before I split up with my husband. I am now living with someone else.
Rabbi: Sharon -- that's ok. You are a die hard Republican so I can overlook your disgressions.
Sharon: And I hate Cramer, Schwart and Toffler more than anyone else. Well, maybe I hate Harris more.
Rabbi: We neutralized Harris after the last election.
Elie: Susan. Allow me to thank you for all of your hard work in supporting Team Teaneck. I know it was hard coming up with the dirt on Toffler but we got the Teaneck Truth blog to help out.
Susan: Yes. They are good. They did a good job making up that ethical lapse b.s. (pardon the French, Rabbi).
Sharon: Toffler is one of those ivy league liberals that believes in pluralism and all that garbage.
Susan: Sharon, you've been listening too much to Limbaugh.
Sharon: He's way too liberal for me.
Susan: Well, what can we do for you guys.
Rabbi: We need to demonize Cramer.
Susan: That shouldn't be hard. He's been living in Teaneck a long time. We can dredge up all the old reports from the newspapers about his opposition to the community. And whatever isn't there, we can just make it up.
Yitz: Remember Cramer was the township lawyer once upon a time. He actually allowed for certain of our concerns to pass.
Susan: Don't worry. Remember 1984 (the book).
Elie: The what?
Rabbi: Elie's just pretending to be Rudolph. I am sure his read that Orwellian masterpiece.
Elie: Yeah. Like Rabbi P. says.
Yitz: I've read it. But how does it apply here.
Susan: Whenever the facts conflict with the version of history we like, we just change the facts.
Elie: I noticed that in other articles I've read in your newspaper.
Susan: Cramer's an easy target. We will get right to it.
Zev-
Saul Bellow wrote in "To Jerusalem and Back" about how his lefty friends sat in the City College cafeteria trying to figure out all the complexities of Stalin's and Hitler's thoughts. Of course what they later discovered was how much more complicated their analyses were than the realities that had been going on in the Dictators' minds.
Cramer and Schwartz misconstrue in line with their desires. A simple mistake of voting in Brooklyn while accompanying his ill mother (uncovered thanks to the work of a paid opposition research expert)became, in their feverish leftist minds, Rudolph's "felony of the twenty-first century".
Also, the shameless bacon-craving that only Louie's Charcoal Pit can satisfy, keeps motivating their ancient rebellion against the faith of their ancestors.
with all the McMansions and no land between houses you've forgotten what they're like.
No land between houses? Are you blind? Seriously, have you been to any of the 5 boroughs? That is no land... I think that 20 feet minimum is not "no land". Please explain what you mean. What I find funny is how the northeast section of Teaneck seems to have even less land between homes than the "McMansions" do.
See, as the conversation comes out, we can tell who and what these anonymous posters are all about.
@Anon 10:35
LOL! The third one is hilarious.
Glad to hear the "1984" reference. It reminds me about Big Witch Toffler's "ethical stealing" of hundreds of thousands of dollars ("I did it for the money") and how it was transformed by her into "ethical conduct". That went on for four full years in between all her rejections by various colleges. (You didn't think anybody would have offered her tenure, did you?)
Let's hope some of her victims come after her.
Following in Harold's footsteps, here is a new instalment in the Teaneck Saga.
The setting is Goodies at about 8:30 p.m. Teh food has been served. Elie and Rabbi P lean into each other.
Elie: I’ve been getting calls all day, rabbi. Our people are restless and unhappy. Some saying we’ve duped them. Others are less kind. We need to think of something to do.
Rabbi P: Don’t worry about the people. People are sheep. We haven’t gotten this far by worrying about what the people think. They just need a diversion, and it’s our job to provide them with one.
Elie: Do you have something in mind?
Rabbi P: What we need to do is organize a public conversion of Hamedudin. That will take care of everything.
Elie: What a super idea. That’s why you’re the brains of this operation. Do you think it can be done?
Rabbi P: Why not? The Pope just did it. Converted a Muslim, that is. Why can’t I? Just think about it, we announce on TeaneckShuls that Hame-what’s-his-name has seen the light and decided to become one of us. Then we have him paraded all over town from shul to shul in a yarmulke. By the time we’re done with him, he’ll be offered the presidency in some shul. In fact, I have one in mind. What’s the name of that Feldman shul on Queen Anne? Don’t they need a president?
Elie: Etz Chaim, I think, but they’re having some problems with that addition of theirs.
Rabbi P. Yeah, that’s right, I know. We need to deal with that. But anyway, this is what I’m thinking.
Elie: Have you broached the subject with Mohammad?
Rabbi P: Who?
Elie: Hameduddin.
Rabbi P: Oh, his name is Mohammad? Didn’t know that. That’s not too good a name for the conversion. Might give some people bad vibes. But what’s in a name? A Muslim by any other name is still a Mohammad. We just need to make the whole thing believable.
Elie: So have you spoken to him?
Rabbi P: No, no. I need to think of the way to sell it to him.
Elie: How about the presidency of your shul? You’ve wanted to replace your president for a while, haven’t you? Plus, it would take care of all the talk about you being intolerant and all.
Rabbi P: Good idea. I will get back to you.
When is Teaneck Truth going to get rid of the poll about Monica. She won. Get it. She won. No one cares whether you want her to resign.
The orthodox should be very happy with Hameeduddin. He wears a head covering more often than Katz.
Same as Robinson wearing a head covering more often than Rudolph. In every picture I saw of Rudolph, he wasn't wearing a head covering. And in the one mailing he sends out exclusively to Jewish community, is the same one picture I have ever seen him wear a yarmulka in!! That sums up all you need to know about that man! I would love to see what he is doing right now...
Just 20 feet between palatial estates in a low density (their word) suburb? The northeast area is urban, baby! And the houses are a lot smaller. West Englewood looks a little ridiculous. Nowhere else in the world do you see such huge houses on so little land.
Same as Robinson wearing a head covering more often than Rudolph. In every picture I saw of Rudolph, he wasn't wearing a head covering. And in the one mailing he sends out exclusively to Jewish community, is the same one picture I have ever seen him wear a yarmulka in!! That sums up all you need to know about that man! I would love to see what he is doing right now...
I noticed that as well. Alot of people at shul were wondering why Rudolph doesn't wear his yarmulke in public, especially at council meetings. Very typical that in the mailing sent primarily to Orthodox residents, he proudly wears one.
To the person who said
"All of us at bnai yeshurun need to ask Rabbi P to explain exactly what happened. we did as we were told, and we end up with Hameedudin!!! this is just unbelievable."
We want to help you. You can again become a community of sentient, functioning adults who think autonomously. I know this is hard and it hurts to see the emperor with no clothes on, but please please please try to put two and two together here. You, and we, will all be the better for it.
Good luck, we are pulling for you!
The silent majority is independent, thinking and unafraid to do what's right.
Yitz and Rabbi P.'s politics has nothing to do with them being Orthodox. They are right wing Republicans. Some in the community agree with them. But a lot of people don't and some are actually completely the opposite.
How was Yitz involved in this election?
Get it straight. The attacks on the Orthodox community and its representatives were non-stop over the last two years (and in Cramer's case thirty-two years).
Rabbi Pruzansky has nothing to do with the huge vote in the Orthodox election districts against Toffler and Honis.
They both ought to start with apologies if they want Teaneck to function smoothly.
The people understand who their friends and enemies are.
Get it straight. The attacks on the Orthodox community and its representatives were non-stop over the last two years (and in Cramer's case thirty-two years).
Rabbi Pruzansky has nothing to do with the huge vote in the Orthodox election districts against Toffler and Honis.
They both ought to start with apologies if they want Teaneck to function smoothly.
The people understand who their friends and enemies are.
Of course, since Monica dreaded going back to Council if it had a Team teaneck majority (which it still has), she could refuse her seat in the "gas chamber".
the problem with Pruzansky is not that he got the orthodox to vote against Taffler and Honis. They won. The problem is that he got hem to vote for Hameduddin, and HE won.
There were just 3 candidates for 3 seats in last month's school board election. But Team Teaneck has two guys available for next year's race.
Three.
Yitz works for Boss Joe Ferriero as does Elnata and Robinson (two of the Team Teaneck candiates). It's really Boss Joe who ran the Team Teaneck campaign. My sense is Cramer and gang are really most opposed to Boss Joe than they are to fighting the Orthodox. Many of these people live with and are friends of Orthodox Jews in town. Boss Joe doesn't live here and doesn't care that we are at each other's throats. Figure it out guys.
What is the eruv lie?
Is the illegal synagogue the same group that took Rabbi Feldman away from the mechitza minyan at the Teaneck Jewish Center? I heard some families who went there now don't have a place to daven. Is that true?
Last election (2006) the Jewish Voice and Opinion spun a lie that the New Beginnings group wanted the eruv to be taken down. It was not true but that didn't stop the JV&O from publishing it then and again this year.
I think the new synagogue on the South side of town did take Rabbi Feldman away from the Mechitza Minyan.
The group that now meets at 554 QA is the same group that took Rabbi Feldman from the Merkaz minyan (aka the mechitza minyan). I checked with 2 people I know who used to go there. I am going to call some other people I know to try find out more.
My contacts also told me that of the entire merkaz minyan, only about 5 or 6 familes followed Rabbi Feldman to the new shul called Etz Chaim. The interesting thing that I was told is that the 5-6 familes were all part of the Arzei Darom "mini-exodus." It seems that they left Arzei, came to the Merkaz Minyan, took the Rabbi and started something new.
Teaneck Truth - Please start a new thread - this one is getting extremely difficult to read on a Blackberry.
That sounds awful. How many families were there in the mechitza minyan? Where do they daven now?
I know some of those families used to go to Young Israel. Can't they just go there?
yes, anon 10:07, it is pretty bad. Some go to the Young Israel, some to Beth Aaron, I have even heard that some have not been going anywhere regularly and they are just bouncing around in a sort of spriritual limbo.
Anon 10:10 am: that's a pretty stupid comment. They USED to go to the Young Israel which means they LEFT the Young Israel. Chances are they werent happy there. You suggest that they just go back. What a chutzpa!
What does Rabbi Feldman have to say? the RCBC?
yes, anon 10:07, it is pretty bad. Some go to the Young Israel, some to Beth Aaron, I have even heard that some have not been going anywhere regularly and they are just bouncing around in a sort of spriritual limbo.
I still don't get why they can't just go to Young Israel. Wasn't Rabbi Feldman the person who built up the mechitza minyan?
Rabbi Feldman did NOT build up the mechitza minyan. The minyan existed long before he arrived. He was instrumental in making it the success it was, but there were many people who paved the way to ensure that he was in a protected environment so he could do work there. I reiterate: Rabbi Feldman did NOT build that minyan.
RCBC = Rabbinical Cowards of Bergen County
Why are you so angry at Rabbi Feldman? How could you say such a thing about the RCBC?
Why are you so angry at Rabbi Feldman? How could you say such a thing about the RCBC?
Because an anonymous person can't face criticism, they can olny give it.
I know that someone will respond that I'm anonymous and I appreciate the irony...but it's not me that insulting others (by name).
I heard from my friend who goes to Beth Aaron that Rabbi Feldman ditched the mechitza minyan for a group that left Arzei Darom. He said many of the mechitza minyan people now don't have a place to daven. Ouch.
@Avi
There is always a place to Daven. There is no reason that people who are unhappy cannot come to the Young Israel. We have a great shul with people from all walks of life. And we even have a Hashkama Hot Kiddush every week. C'mon down!
Zev, it aint that simple. People leave shuls for many different reasons: they don't feel comfortable there, they are not of the same hashkafa as the Rabbi etc etc. Please do not make light of the difficulty a person may feel going back to a shul. In YOUR opinion they Young Israel is a great place; I assume you know that some people consider it like a high school and dont like it.
Did anyone from the mechitza minyan ask Rabbi Feldman not to leave?
ill bet anyone that within the next 2 years.. we will see requests for budget increases and a spike in taxes.. with Ms. Gas Chamber in play, we should see her voting down anything that brings money into the town that would heaven forbid lighten our tax burden.
Hameeduddin is in, and we can only wait to see how effective he is in pulling in the spending of Ms. Gaschamber.. but as he is alone it pretty much like sending him to be hung on a tree..
and by hung on a tree im referring to a pinata, where he is bludgeoned to death by blindfolded children..
i said that comment knowing 93% of people would turn that comment around.. but you 7% and you know who you are.. come get some lovin
Young Israel is like high school? That's a good one. In more ways than one. Zev knows that better than anyone. Right, Zev?
like sending him to be hung on a tree..
and by hung on a tree im referring to a pinata
Of course you did. Humans are hanged, not hung.
I would like to thank you for trying to avoid exacerbating the situation and attempting to raise the level of discourse on the blog and I look forward to seeing you at council meetings.
oh, you guys are more fun than a barrel of monkeys. "Humans are hanged and not hung?" Actually, Swiggle, they could be both. Even at the same time.
>Of course you did. Humans are hanged, not hung.
I would like to thank you for the grammar lesson.. and will be cautious when using an indelicate adjectival form of the word.. i will also continue to avoid dangling my participle.
After reading the last 20.. no 100 messages on this board.. i think i actually did raise the bar if this blog.. infact, i could have pasted a link to William Hanged err.. Hung and it would still be a massive improvement..
PS. I loved high school.. go Cleveland Heights High tigers.!! if you can find me a shul that has a decent football team.. please let me know.
Bob: people from the mechitza minyan begged Rabbi Feldman not to go with this group to form Etz Chaim. There are emails from a lot of members of Merkaz to Rabbi Feldman that said it would be a huge mistake for him to go because of the issues on the south side of Cedar Lane. But he went anyway.
So why did he go?
Avi: excellent question. He probably followed the money.
@Truth D. Hurt
A Shul, like a High School? Never!
The entire Jewish community is like High School. Just read this blog. Rumors, he said, she said, my friends, your friends. Hell, that is half of Jackie Mason's act. You walk out of any Shul in town, and people will be making L"H comments about what one person is wearing, who their sister is married to, what the Rabbi said, how your stocks did this week. Go to any Shul dinner and you will see cliques. These are all common traits, unfortunately. But it is naive to say that this doesn't occur in almost every shul.
Granted, when any Shul has a contingency of younger members, there is a higher likelihood of occurrence. But that is why, as in any shul, or in the workplace, you choose your friends wisely.
---
As far as the hashkafa of the Rabbi, I don't buy that argument. I go to shul to Daven, to have a place for my children to learn and be a part of the community, to be around our friends and extended family, and because it is close. I may or may not agree with the Rabbi of a shul, but as far as the main reason for going to the particular shul, the Rabbi shouldn't be the main draw.
It happens to be that I love Rabbi Weinberger (Young Israel), and he is great for my family, but I think that out of the hours a week of regular attendance, how much of a shul experience is the speech? During the week, many people daven near work or at other shuls. Many people already have a Rav from wherever they were born or went to school. So, while people flock TO shuls because of a Rabbi, not to deminish the importance of that role, a Rabbi shouldn't be the reason why someone DOESN'T go to a shul. Thank G-d, in Teaneck, our shuls have many minyanim. If it was a question of not liking a Rabbi, and you were "spiritually wandering" with the choice of not going at all, I am sure you can find a minyan that would suit you fine. I think this is an excuse to hold grudges or use some warped sense of principal to validate a cantankerous attitude. There are plenty of shuls and minyanim within. There is no reason you cannot find a place to hang your hat. In every environment there are people who are difficult, unfriendly, judgmental, or rude. The small groups of Jock / Cheerleader personality-type exists in every community. Accept that and move on.
People are looking for perfection, and while I applaud the desire for it and hope that they become active in the shul to make that happen, using the lack of perfection as a reason NOT to attend makes no sense. The best way to improve something is to improve it from within. Simply sitting on the sidelines and complaining, or refusing to participate entirely, is very easy to do but accomplishes little.
He went with the people who gave him a place to go.
Chaim: a bit of history - all the Merkaz people (including the arzei faction, although as you read you will be able to ask if the arzei people were really working with or against everyone)were working as a group to find a central location near the Jewish Center that would service as many people from the original minyan as possible. A house was found which "apparently" fell through and then within a matter of days the arzei faction found a new house, didn't even invite merkaz families to see it, made an offer and left 30 families without a shul. All this with the Rabbi's knowledge and blessing. The merkaz group excluding the arzei faction were blindsided by this and were informed at a meeting by the Rabbi that this was the way it was going to be, sorry but that's it.
Now let's talk a little bit about the funds that were raised for this building that the Rabbi calls his new home. The merkaz minyan changed its name to Torat Chesed while at Care One. (The leaders of Torat Chesed happened to coincedentally be mainly from the arzei faction.) These leaders collected funds to pay the Rabbi but part of the funds were going to a 'building fund' for a new shul, whereever that would ultimately be. Then the announcements started changing to include a very slight and almost unnoticeable change in name from ToraT Chesed to ToraS Chesed. You may argue that it is nothing more than T vs S semantics. and the leaders blew it off as just that. Well, look at the public records: a corporation called ToraS Chesed was established and inlcuded the names of at least 2 of the leaders of the minyan. All under the radar without anyone realizing it.
Let that digest and we will talk some more about exactly where the rabbi made his new home.
We should all be embarrased to be called Orthodox Jews..
What happened to "Love your Neighbor", obviously we do not practice that Mitzvah in Teaneck....Now I know why Moshiach will not come..Hate..Hate ,,Hate..
I am Orthodox and Frum From Birth and I am sick and tired of all this Jew Against Jew Crap..We will all become known in this Township as Self Hating Jews and that includes Reform, Conservative and Orthodox..Wake up and do Teshuvah with your fellow Jew.. and love others that are not Jews as well as long as they Treat you with Kindness and Sincerity.
I am truly embarrased at what we have become..Hate from the Non Orthodox and Hate from the Orthodox.
When will this all END !!!!!!!
when I said that Young Israel was like high school, I was referring to the pervasive rumors about the proclivities of certain members to boink their friends' wives. Heard anything about that, Zev? Just the environment I would want to raise my children in.
@joey
Didn't know that people had wives in high school. Hmm. As far as issues that go on in communities, I have heard stories from just about every Shul in Teaneck and Bergenfield. So which Shul in town is filled with perfect people? Every community has issues, what does that have to do with high school?
@shadowjew
Amen. I agree wholeheartedly with your statement. The L"H has to stop. I include myself in this, and if I have personally offended anyone, I apologize. Let's focus any personal anger inward and push forward in a productive way. We can disagree without being disagreeable.
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