The Spice Box
THE SPICE BOX Seattle slew? Two Items from Seattle's Jewish Transcript were called to our attention by reader Ruth Bovarnick of those parts, who observes that despite the evidence, the "Jewish...
...Thank you, moment readers, for your letters...
...of Chicago: "If you would like a real treat, purchase Chava Alberstein's album, 'Like a Wildflower' ('K'mo Tzemach Bar...
...There was a man—and see...
...How great is the pain...
...West Hartford's Rabbi Kerry Olitzky ran into this example of heavenly business in Seminole, Florida...
...Some writers were worried about the English translation...
...Whenever the poet spoke through it, He told it all the secrets of his heart...
...When it rains, it pours From the volume of mail that's been pouring into moment box 81 A, we can see that a lot of moment readers do a lot more than pour...
...How God has become male is a good question," she said...
...In retaliation, Jews while at prayer adopted the swaying motion peculiar to camel riders...
...His hand made all its strings speak...
...The 21st day of Tammuz, the date of his death, is observed as a national mourning day in Israel...
...so is a lot A piece of trivia from the desk of Rabbi Richard J. Israel: Charles Valentin Alkan, 19th century composer, virtuoso pianist, observant Jew and friend of Chopin, died in 1888 at the age of 74 when his bookcase tipped over and a set of the Talmud fell on him...
...We're with the JIB—we're stumped...
...January 27,1983...
...Lost forever...
...Could he have written the song...
...There are some very beautiful musical settings of this for funerals...
...Then there were the folks who wanted to offer whatever help they could, no matter how limited...
...A.S...
...If Jabotinsky could only see him now Why...
...Or maybe they pored over the great Hebrew classics first, but one thing is clear: They do both...
...Readers are Invited— and encouraged—to submit material for The Spice Box...
...He had a fiddle— A living and speaking soul...
...And finally (acharon acharon chaviv), from S.S...
...and M.S., we hope you're reading this...
...What a pity...
...This poem has been set to music, and she sings it beautifully...
...Two Items from Seattle's Jewish Transcript were called to our attention by reader Ruth Bovarnick of those parts, who observes that despite the evidence, the "Jewish community is alive and well and, as is readily ascertainable, flexible and adaptable...
...I searched in vain, however, for LOXX, which I had hoped to find in the vicinity of Nova Scotia...
...The God of the goldeneh medineh Deborah Dash Moore writes with evidence that all these years that we've been reciting the blessings, we've been baruahing up the wrong tree...
...And others thought to give the source for the poem in mamma-loshen...
...Should you receive a response, would you please share it with us...
...I'm too young at 46 and too full of life to be morbid...
...Our very favorites were the letters about musical renditions of Bialik's poem (after all, in Hebrew you use the same word for "poem" and for "song"): A cantor from Worcester: "The quotation is written by Chaim Nachman Bialik, one of the greatest Hebrew poets of modern times...
...I seldom think of my own death...
...And a couple from Knoxville wrote: "We too have been seeking the source of this quote...
...Or maybe only the music...
...Lost forever...
...They pore over moment, even as far as its last page, and then they pore over the great Hebrew classics...
...After all, everybody knows that moment readers are a well-read lot...
...R.R...
...Remained mute till this very day...
...One string remained mute...
...Be sure to include your name, address and telephone number...
...That string quivered all its days...
...from NYC sent the Hebrew text but wrote that he wasn't positive that Bialik was indeed the author...
...Silently it quivered...
...We refrain from additional comment, testament to our enormous self-restraint...
...how great...
...I'm curious as to the circumstances that prompted your inquiry and would enjoy hearing from you...
...Not only is a little knowledge a dangerous thing...
...Here's what happened, and here's .how it happened: In December, Dr...
...Keren Nishry, who shared the ad with us, urges some of you folks out there to try the program—in either mode...
...Naomi Bluestone, whose articles appear in these pages from time to time, placed an author's query in our Classified section, asking for information on the source of a particular quotation...
...We reserve the right to edit all submissions...
...But then, the next day, three more came in, and then, five or six daily...
...J.B...
...Didn't come at all...
...from Cincinnati (who happens to be a renowned Judaica scholar): "The quotation is from a poem, "Acharei Moti," by Chalm Nachman Bialik( 1873-1934...
...A rabbi in Brooklyn commented, "The full poem (written in 1904) should be available in any major anthology, but be warned: The quality of translation varies greatly...
...clipping from IsraeJ Todaj...
...Jesse Zel Lurie sends us this incredible, unadulterated (scout's honor...
...Depending on length, well pay from $5 to $50 for material that is accepted...
...G.T., from LA: "If my memory serves me well, Max Helfman taught us this song at the Brandeis Institute (CA) when I was a camper there in 1957...
...What a pity...
...The man died before his time, And the song of his life was disrupted...
...And if he tarried—it waited for him day after day, Cried for him secretly— And he tarried and didn't come at all...
...Gentlemen: Perhaps you can verify a claim I heard recently about the rocking motion [known in Yiddish as "snuckling" ] used by Jews at prayer: It was said that Jews were not permitted to ride camels because their conquerors at the time didn't want the Jews to be higher than they were...
...in Des Plaines, IL: "I, too, was moved the first time I heard the words of this poem...
...Some kind words of support, ranging from "You certainly have good taste in poetry" (A.L., Chicago) to "P.S...
...The task force suggests that Methodist liturgy, prayers, confessions and sermons use the Aramaic word for God, 'abba,' and other biblical and historical forms of address...
...We believe we have to reclaim the whole God, not just a male God...
...Have any readers ever heard of such a thing...
...The late composer, Max Helfman, translated the poem and set it to music, which he entitled 'Eulogy.' It is a part of Helfman's 'Mourner's Service.' It would appear that Helfman composed this service in anticipation of his own death, which followed closely after the publication of this work...
...wrote from Atlanta that the "Yiddish translation, by I. L. Schwartz, is in a book published by the Jewish Labor Tribunal in 1935...
...With cream cheese, of course Richard Jacobs from Sudbury, MA, sends us a map and a comment: "Intersections of airways are given names, to assist in navigation...
...Ikeazose...
...The report: The Chassidim, who are known for their spirituality, are also known for the many arithmetic errors they make when they do gamatria...
...While on a trip to the mlahpachah in the Maritimes, I spotted BAGLE intersection just off the coast of Prince Edward Island...
...Rabbi Samuel Rothberg of Temple Beth El forwards to us a fundrais-ing letter the Synagogue received...
...Woe...
...J.P...
...Material cannot be returned...
...For example, J.E...
...What, a pity...
...It was written by Chaim Nachman Bialik...
...he is no more, And the song of his life was disrupted...
...They pore...
...NYC) was kind enough to take the time to lovingly copy out all four verses of the Hebrew text, long-hand, on a sheet of legal paper...
...So, that version of the program is—as tradition mandates—replete with mistakes...
...He referred Bluestone to a rabbi friend of his at HUC-JIR in LA, if she wanted more info...
...We've studied the language that supports this image and have made suggestions for changes...
...His fingers hopped around it...
...If you do, let us know...
...After My Death After my death mourn me thus: "There was a man—and see: he is no more...
...A handful of the answers were simple and straightforward (and thorough...
...it trembled soundlessly It yearned sacny, longed thirstily For its chant, its redeeming friend, As a heart yearns sadly for its destiny...
...Where good intentions are not enough Spotted by Elayne Dauber on the religion page of the Detroit News of February 5: A United Methodist task force on church language says nix to "Lord" and "King" as synonyms for God...
...I'd be grateful if you could either verify or refute this claim...
...You may or may not know that Bialik, who wrote in Yiddish and Hebrew, is considered the finest modern Hebrew-language poet...
...Baruch College (named after the Jewish financier by the same name) has news for us: Well, what other kind of temple would you expect...
...It is included in Kol Kitvei Ch...
...This piece certainly supports the thesis...
...We weren't surprised when three responses came in on Day One...
...So it went, until, at last count, we were up to 38 responses to Bluestone's query...
...N. Bialik, 19th printing, Tel Aviv, The Dvir Co., Ltd., 1958, p. 39...
...We are pleased to reprint here the complete English and Hebrew texts of the poem, sent to us by a number of readers...
...We were curious as to the difference between the two modes advertised in the annual dinner journal of the Women's Social Service for Israel, so we called up the Lex Computing Corporation ourselves...
...None of us is quite sure what to make of the ad, but we couldn't resist sharing it with you...
...However, I would want this sung at my funeral, especially because of the line, 'lost forever is the song.' How true of life at any age when it's ended...
...Please send us ideas, notes, curiosities—anything you'd like to share with our subscribers...
...He had one more chant— And the chant is lost forever...
...Carolyn Henninger Oehler of Chicago, chairwoman of the task force, said those synonyms imply that God is male...
...Only one secret he kept to himself...
...Contributing editor Bill Novak was the first of almost half a dozen readers to spot this ad for a hotel in—of all places—Dallas, taken from—of all places— The Wall Street Journal...
...It has become a part of our choir repertoire and was sung this year at our Yizkor service on Yom Kippur...
...Chuckling while snuckling The Jewish Information Bureau, a nonprofit organization providing just the services its name indicates, was incredulous over this request for information, which we reprint here in its entirety...
...Check out the name on the mailing label...
...He had one more chant— And the chant is lost forever...
...This is one of my favorite poems, which I learned in my Hebrew class, before World War II, in Poland" (L.S., New Hartford, NY...
Vol. 8 • April 1983 • No. 4
