Sixth Half-Jewish Network Blog/Email Newsletter

Dear Friends:

Greeting to all of you observing Rosh Hashannah (Sunday, sundown, September 16),  Yom Kippur (Tuesday, sundown, September 25), St. Michael and All Angels (Saturday, September 29), Sukkot (Sunday, sundown, September 30), Eid ul-Adha (Thursday, sundown, October 25),  Halloween (All Hallows Eve) (Wednesday, October 31), All Saints Day (Thursday, November 1), Islamic New Year (Wednesday, sundown, November 14), and Ashura (Friday, sundown, November 23).

Happy Holidays!

Upcoming Conference

European Conference on Interfaith Couples Will Include Patrilineal Adult Children of Intermarriage

November 1-3, 2012 — Zurich, Switzerland

http://www.hybridejuedischeidentitaeten.org/tagung/

One of the conference’s primary participants is Doppel:Halb, a European half-Jewish group:

If you are going to be visiting Europe at that time or you already live there, please contact Doppel:Halb at:

http://www.doppelhalb.de/english.html

Selected News Items About Half-Jewish People

1. Many German Jewish communities continue to accept only matrilineal half-Jewish people:

http://www.economist.com/node/21559462

Some German Jewish liberal groups disagree with them:

http://www.hybridejuedischeidentitaeten.org/tagung/?page_id=58

2. Student at Princeton Hillel Rejected by Other Students after Discovery Mother was a Convert — This story has a better ending than many such stories. The Half-Jewish Network contacted the rabbi, and it is probable that many other people and groups did as well.

The rabbi reached out to the student involved, set up an open community meeting on the subject, and created a committee to devise new policies for the future that will cut down on this type of incident. Rabbi Julie Roth’s response was impressive, as most Jewish institutions ignore complaints from half-Jewish members.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rivka-t-cohen/raised-orthodox-not-jewish-enough-sabbath_b_1474682.html?show_comment_id=152413069#c

3. Murdered half-Jewish, half-Arab peace activist Juliano Mer-Khamis honored:

http://www.haaretz.com/culture/arts-leisure/juliano-mer-khamis-impossible-legacy-brought-alive-in-rocket-torn-sderot.premium-1.439798

4.  Hungarian anti-Semitic politician discovers he is grandchild of intermarriage:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/14/csanad-szegedi-jewish_n_1776617.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk2%26pLid%3D192560

5. Israel’s ‘war’ on Arab-Jewish couples — Decades ago, the Israeli Knesset (Parliament) walked out when a rabbi member gave speeches calling for legal measures against Arab-Jewish couples. The Knesset speaker of that era pointed out that the Holocaust had taught Jews why legal measures against intermarriage were horrific. These days, the Knesset has discussions about “Jewish identity” and the best ways to prevent Israeli Jews from marrying Palestinian Arabs:

http://972mag.com/campaign-calls-on-arab-men-to-keep-out-of-jlem-away-from-jewish-girls/54263/

6.  Many Jews of Krakow, Poland are half-Jewish — Half-Jewish people in the article are referred to as “having Jewish roots.” Israeli newspapers now sometimes refer to us as “non-halachic Jews.” One the one hand, some people are obviously trying to be more welcoming to us. On the other hand, calling us by these terms avoids use of the term “intermarriage” and minimizes the very real discrimination we face within Judaism, preventing open discussion and demands for change. Terms like that hide our intermarried parents and our existence behind phrases that kind of whitewash our difficulties.

http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/international/american_style_jcc_thriving_krakow

7.  Scandal-plagued French politician is grandchild of intermarriage:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominique_Strauss-Kahn

8. Continuing debate in Jewish community over use of term “half-Jewish” — The Half-Jewish Network has repeatedly suggested to Jewish institutions that they let us call ourselves whatever terms we are comfortable with, but that suggestion has always been very poorly received <internet grin>:

http://www.interfaithfamily.com/blog/iff/growing-up-in-an-interfaith-family/what-can-i-say/

9. Rain Pryor touring in “Fried Latkes and Chicken,” her show about being the child of a Jewish/African-American intermarriage in the 1970s:

http://www.interfaithfamily.com/arts_and_entertainment/popular_culture/Afros_and_Yiddish_and_Soul_Food_Oy_Vey.shtml?

10. Prominent atheist writer Christopher Hitchens descended from several intermarriages:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Hitchens

11. Michael Servetus, one of first Christian Unitarians executed in Europe, and a pioneering physician, was half-Jewish:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Servetus

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