Living Jews: Sara Marcus of The Jewish Wedding Network

Marriage isn’t really a word in my lexicon. It’s not that I don’t believe in marriage, and quite a few of my friends are marching steadily towards that path.. . it’s just that I think it is far enough in my future, that worrying about it now does me no good.

That’s partially why, when I received an email from Sara Marcus, the energy behind PopJudaica.com and JewishWeddingNetwork.com, referring to an introduction from (The St. Lou Jew’s favorite St. Louis Jewish artist) Maya Escobar, I was amused, and intrigued.

After a few days of scheduling snafus, I had the opportunity to connect on the phone with Sara, and might just have convinced her to take a road trip through St. Louis.

The interview with Sara started out rather unconventionally, in that she asked all the questions. She was really interested in learning about both Jewish life in St. Louis, as well as some of the organizations we have been involved with.

Once we finally steered the conversation to her, it became apparent very quickly that the Jewish Wedding Network is an idea that comes from an identified need, and has grown very quickly into a very useful resource.

Sara spoke about the experience of planning her own wedding, back in 2006. She said that despite the wealth of general wedding planning resources out there, very little, if anything, existed for planning a Jewish wedding.

She said that there were so many questions that arose in the course of the planning, things like, “what kind of Ketuba should you have” and “what should the Chupa look like”. She wanted her wedding to reflect her and her husband’s creativity, but also incorporate Jewish traditions. In one piece of creativity, Sara's bouquet was comprised of J-Date profiles that she thought would fit her friends.

After the wedding, she had 'wedding withdrawal', which is when the idea for the Jewish Wedding Network appeared. Having some experience in the online Jewish space, she looked decided to incorporate all of the things she wished she had known before the wedding.

The piece de resistance, as Sara puts it, is bride blog, in which Jewish brides blog about topics from serious to frivolous. Many cover wedding dresses, invitation designs, or family issues that come up along the way. Each bride provides a unique perspective and a new way of looking at how to have a Jewish wedding.

The site launched on April 15th, and has already brought quite a bit of positive feedback.

Sara, herself, has really enjoyed the experience.

"Its really great to be around people who are in love, and excited... its contagious"

Be sure to check out Sara's sites online at www.JewishWeddingNetwork.com and www.popjudaica.com
Read More......

Living Jews: Interview with Michael Oren

Michael Oren is the foremost historian, author, and scholar on the Middle East, and is currently a visiting professor at Georgetown University and a fellow at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem. He is also giving a free talk at Washington University this Thursday, April 2nd, at 7:30 PM at 560 Trinity.

The St. Lou Jew had the opportunity to interview Michael Oren, along with the St. Louis Jewish Light, and Wash U's Student Life. Read on for the interview.

Was the Gaza opp a success?

Generally, the only thing keeping Fatah alive is the IDF. This is why abbas doesn’t call for the withdrawal of troops.

It was important for the IDF to deal Hamas a decisive blow. Give Gazans an option to live like they have under Hamas, or like in the West Bank

Yes, the IDF dealt a decisive blow, Hamas fighters went underground and did not fight..a paper tiger. Israel shored up deterrent powerand eliminated hamas deterrence power.

To have gone into Gaza city and uprooted Hamas would have required the IDF to kill several thousand Gazan civilians. The leadership of Hamas was hiding under Shifa hospital and had the whole hospital wired to blow.

If Israel had successfully uprooted Hamas, who would Israel have given Gaza to?

As of the day of [the day of the interview] I decided to change the topic. I was going to give historical survey of Israel trying to reconcile being Jewish and Demographic, but will now going cover the 7 existential threats to Israel. No other country faces truly existential threats."

What do you hope students will get from your talk?

"I hope that students will appreciate this opinion not just by people who have studied this, but as someone who has lived this as well."

How would Freeman's appointment to the National Intelligence post have effected US policy and Middle East outcomes?

"I believe that certain forces in the middle east won’t react to American policy. I think it has its own dynamics, and agency, not just based on American Foreign policy, so I think that there is a limit to what extent Freeman would have been able to to twist the intelligence to meet his agenda.

I don’t think that Obama reaching out is ultimately going to change Iran’s behavior. I think it is important to reach out after 8 years of Bush, but I think it is more important that Americans be reminded of what Syria and Iran really are. This is not the first administration to reach out to Damascus

I think the most important thing people can do in terms of getting involved in the middle east is educating themselves. Many people with partial educations sometimes go and do things that are very dramatic. Be involved, read the newspapers every day, go there, get those experiences."

We recently had a chance to hear Saree Makdisi, who spoke about a one-state solution. Is this a legitimate solution, or is it an underhanded attempt to destroy Israel?

"Yes and Yes – they are not mutually exclusive. It has always been a possibility. It was one in 1948. The Palestinians could stop demanding a separate state and could demand equal rights in Israel, and you would already have parity between Jewish and non Jewish Israelis and then the Jewish state would cease to exist. The question is not so much the motivations, but whether it is practical, whether it could actually happen and the answer is ‘no’. Many Jewish Israelis wouldn’t be interested in living in a state like that. And if the state gravitates towards and Arab political culture as opposed to a Western political culture, many Israelis would not want to live there. So it is certainly a prescription for the end of the state of Israel as a Jewsih state and even for the presence of Jewish people in the area. But you have to look at other places in the area in which there is a single state solution in place, like Lebanon, like Iraq. None of these single-states solutions are really working. They have always been a formula for protracted, untractable civil strife. And so its not as if tomorrow, if there was a single state solution, everyone would be living peacefully with each other, instead it sets the state for another round of very bloody civil strife. Where states have succeeded in living more or less peacefully with one another have been situations of partitions, in which they are simply separated from one another, like in the Gulf Region. But I don’t think that is in the immediate future either, so it becomes an issue of interim solutions, so the question is, how do we better manage this conflict, and you do that by building up the Palestinian economy and institutions and uprooting illegal settlements and creating the greatest distance possible. This clears ground for a two-state solution."

The US media is often criticized as being anti-Israel…

"I don’t think that the US media is particularly anti-Israel. The European media is far far worse. If there is an unfairness towards Israel, it is in the gross disproportionality that Israel merits in the Western Media. For example, the New York Times just had a front page story about two Israeli Sargeants who claimed that they witnessed war crimes in Gaza, but you read the story and it turns out that they didn’t witness them; they just heard rumors about them. The US media is fair, while the European media is not fair."

You said that you were going to speak about Israel's dilemma as a Jewish and Democratic state, how are these issues going to manifest themselves.

"I think that we are on a major collision course with Iran, which will bring to the fore the fault lines in Israeli society between Israeli Jews and more Islamist-minded Israeli Arabs. I think there will have to be a line drawn, if Israel is to survive in the Jewish state. The question is really where the line will be drawn.

The Labor party wants to compensate Palestinians for any land taken in the West Bank, with land in the Negev, while Lieberman wants to compensate them with land in the Galilee, which is densely populated by Israeli Arabs. Lieberman sees this as a two-birds, one-stone situation in that it transfers Israeli Arabs to PA (Palestinian Authority) control. On the face of it, this appears cruel undemocratic, because the Israeli Arabs wouldn't have a choice, and most would rather live under Israel than PA, even though they don't like Israel.

Labor and Kadima are also discussing dividing up Jerusalem, but no one has asked the several hundred-thousand Palestinian Arabs who live there. Most of them would rather live under israel, even though they don't like Israel, rather than the PA as well."

Are you more or less optimistic about chances for peace than you were a year ago?

"I'm more optimistic, but not about chances for peace. Americans like to think about solutions and peace. I think in terms of survival, national strength, cohesion, deterrence... all those things are more important to me. Let me unpack that, peace is not going to happen, in the entire Middle East, because there are virtually no solutions to any Middle Eastern problems, only better managing of the conflict. Security is going to be a very elusive quality for a long time to come. But I'm very optimistic that Israel has improved its deterrence power vastly as a result of the Gaza operation, the economy is doing very well, tourism is off the charts, you can't get a hotel room, Israeli society is very robust and strong, vollunteerism is high, we had over 100% response to the reserve call up during the Gaza operation. All of the indicators show that Israel is in a vastly better position geo-strategically and economically than it has been at anytime in the last 61 years. That's reason for optimism! Israel hasn't been at peace for any second during those 61 years, so if you leave the peace out of it, we're doing very well and I'm very optimistic for the future."

Read More......

Living Jews: Erez Safar aka Diwon

Erez Safar, aka Diwon, is moving to the head of the Yidster music scene in New York. He has organized Sephardic music festivals, put together mix tapes, and continues to push the envelope of Jewish music for the masses.

His latest CD, 'Shir Ha Shirim' takes one of the 5 Megilot (sacred scrolls) of the same name and adapts it into an almost meditation-like musical piece.

Shir Ha Shirim is basically an allegory of the relationship between God and the People of Israel, explained as the love between two people. It is traditionally read on Pesach, as we celebrate liberation of the Jewish People from slavery in Egypt.

The new CD features the voice of Benjamin Brody, singing a Moroccan melody backed by a subtle and sometimes subdued musical landscape. The deeply suggestive and intimate nature of the poem is understated in favor of the more spiritual context to create the potential to induce a trance-like state in the listener.

The St. Lou Jew recently had the opportunity to connect with Erez for a brief interview.

First of all, paint me the picture of this project: How did it get started, how did the pieces come together?

I heard a track of Benyamin singing Lecha Dodi and was blown away by how much of his soul was coming through the singing. I got in touch and told him to come by and listen to some of my music. He was into it and I played him this one song that I always meditated on since it had this vibe that you could just listen to over and over. He immediately looked over and said, "I could sing Shir HaShirim to this". The next day we recorded the entire Shir HaShirim in one take... 35 minutes. After that Dugans and I (Diwon) spent 2 weeks cutting up the chapters and making the music and breaks and such...I was on a high for 3 weeks listening to the album. I'm talking about a very spiritual high, and I was curious if it was just me or we really hit something holy so,I played it for a few spiritual people to see what they thought, including, Y-Love, my wife, DeScribe, Matis[yahu] and a few others. They were also really into it. I thnk we touched something here. Maybe some new genre of holy-hipster music.


How did you get started with Shemspeed?

I started it almost 2 years ago.....Shemspeed is basically the front/public side to all the things I have been doing for the last 6 or so years. I run a record label, Modular Moods and a Sephardic Music Festival and through both of those I have put together all sorts of events and tours and albums and releases and so Shemspeed functions as a way for fans to interact with all the things going on in this world of Jewish/Israeli music. A lot of the content are things that we produce, whether its graphics, remixes, albums, events, tours....but it's also sort of a commentary on the culture that is thriving from Jewish art........the Shemspeed Daily is the place to go for all that.


Where are you turning to get all of these diverse soundscapes that make up your musical endeavors?

Well, as a DJ I have my ear to the streets, but also to the past and the history of Jewish music both Middle Eastern and Eastern European have both influenced what I do, For instance "The Beat Guide to Yiddish" is sort of a sonic shout out to Ashkenaz culture and Yiddish music from the Barry Sisters to current musicians like Lipa Schmeltzer, but on the other side I have the more Yemenite focused, original music I produce as Diwon and that comes from my passion for Yemenite tradition which has come from my upbringing, as my mother's side are all from Yemen.


What is your vision for Jewish music?

I see so much rich tradition and melody in all the different Jewish musics and I like getting that out there, but I'm also motivated by the "Light unto the nations" concept of Judaism. I believe in unity and setting a good example and the music that Shemspeed/Modular Moods releases a lot of times is music witha positive message, a lot of times its hip hop, which is refreshing I think. The idea is to release music that speaks to everyone, but from a foundation of positivity, inspiration and truth and I believe by living that and producing music that is consistent with that, we could speak to nations and hopefully motivate them towards positivity and unity. A lot of it is fueled by Judaism.

How has Judaism shaped your perspective on the world?

see above ;)

To learn more about Erez, check out www.erezsafar.com and www.modularmoods.com/diwonpresskit.html
Read More......

Living Jews: State Representative Rachel Storch

Last week, at Sasha's Wine Bar on Demun, several of The St. Lou Jew's bloggers had an opportunity to sit down with Rachel Storch, State Rep from the 64th District.

We think that St. Louis is pretty fortunate to have her as a representative, read on to find out why.

A native of St. Louis and graduate of Washington University's School of Law, Rachel Storch is connected to St. Louis.

As the State Representative of the 64th District, she represents an area that includes Dogtown, the Hill, Forest Park, Washington University and the Delmar Loop.

How did this young woman end up speaking for some of our favorite St. Louis neighborhoods?

"I did a year in Americorps Vista," says Rep. Storch, "which was amazing. It was a mix of law and public policy around health and welfare and there was a lot opportunity to impact legislation."

Following this, Storch worked on Mel Carnahan's Senate campaign and after he won, Storch was asked to go to Washington to work for his wife, who took his place.

After making some good connections, Storch was recruited by a group dedicated to bringing women into politics and won the State Rep. election.

When she was first elected, she was the only Yid in the state legislature and we wanted to know how being young, Jewish, and female play out.

Rep. Storch quashed that pretty quickly by pointing out that the largest divides in the MO congress are really rural/urban. She also made the point that the art of legislating is really about finding commonalities, so labels and really get in the way.

She explained further, "I wouldn't say that the labels mean nothing and sometimes you have to overcome them, but I think that you do yourself a sdisservice when you let a category dominate your perspective."

She summed up the point simply and eloquently, "Assuming that you can only represent people that fit your demographic is unrealistic."

Still, we wanted to push a little further and understand how a Jewish upbringing and identity have influenced her (she did Americorps, after all) and it turns out that Yiddishkeit has had an impact:

"I think that being Jewish really informs your whole value system. Some of the traditional Jewish values like education, access to science and healthcare inform decisions that we make. I think those are shared values."

So now that we had that out of the way, we moved along to St. Louis, and a topic near and dear to our hearts, Washington University's expansion/gentrification/land grab.

Storch pointed out a lot of the positives that the university has had as a community anchor and employer, but noted room for improvement.

"WU has a committment to the communities that they are in. People should be engaged in those area, there could be a symbiotic relationship there in which, for example, social work students participate [in the communities, around the issues they are studying] a lot more."

We also wanted to get her take on the issues that the city of St. Louis is facing.

Storch noted that, while historic preservation tax credits have been immensely successful, the city is not in a great place, "I think STL is in a dangerous place right now.. Some of these communities are like 3rd world counties. Schools are failing, there are high rates of STDs. The fragmented racial history hasn't been overcome and some major companies are pulling out or being sold."

But Storch remained positive and confident that with a continued emphasis on improving leadership and involvement, progress will be made on these issues.

The St. Lou Jew wanted to get to know Rachel Storch a bit better, beyond the politics. So we asked what she watches and reads.

"I watch almost no TV, and I don't have much time. I loved the Sopranos, I like Mad Men. Went to High School with Jon Hamm (lead on Mad Men). I've watched my share of Law and Order, too. But I love movies, I will see almost anything. Just saw Frost Nixon, and I really liked Doubt. I really love old movies, especially Casablanca and those with Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.

Books are another story, I was a lit major in college, and really love late 19th century American writers like Emerson but also Yeats.

I really wanted to know what Storch does in her free time and asked, "Do you ever get time off when you are in STL," to which she easily responded, "do you really want to know?" and proceeded to produce a ridiculous schedule.

"The line between personal and professional blurs, but I really enjoy a lot of this stuff, you really have an ability to impact public policy."

As we wound down, we wanted to get a sense of accountability and transparency. If we give someone a call, will anyone care?

"One thing about MO, the house districts are really small, so you can't be really unresponsive. I may not personally respond to every email that comes in, but I certain read them all."

Ok...so how do we get to where you are?
"The best way to get involved is to volunteer on a campaign. It really gets you on the inside."

My only remaining question was, why aren't there more Jewish women like Rachel Storch on Jdate?
Read More......

Suspiciously Jewish - Social Entrepreneurship

This is so wrong... but... Let's say you read a story. . . its about a girl, a young woman, who received a Masters of Social Work from Washington University (in St. Louis) and who now runs a Social Entrepreneurship project.

Is it wrong that I expect her to be Jewish?

Rebecca Kousky, founder of Nest, meets all of my ideals for having some Jewy-ness about her; she is clearly intelligent, articulate, and cares about the world around her. . . and all this without having actually met her!

Nest is a nonprofit organization dedicated to changing the lives of women in developing countries. The mission of Nest is to support women artists and artisans in the developing world by helping them create sustainable entrepreneurial businesses. To do this, Nest provides micro-credit loans to be used for the purchase of the supplies and materials necessary to begin and/or maintain art or craft-based businesses.

How cool is that? This is the highest level of Tzedaka and Tikkun Olam on so many levels, I need to find out if my suspicions are correct.

It is completely ridiculous that I want/expect her to be Jewish given the work she is doing, but I still really want to know.

In fact, I'm going to be interviewing Rebecca tonight. Stay tuned for the Living Jews interview of Rebecca Kousky!
Read More......