How the Jewish Community can Forgive Delmon Young

The power of teshuva can turn this hurtful incident into a one that teaches compassion and love.

Delmon should keep swinging the bat in a Tigers uniform because Judaism believes in the God of second chances. Judaism instructs us that we must give everyone the opportunity to make amends. In fact, I have a few suggestions that can make Delmon one of the most popular players in the Jewish community today.

When Young was arrested on April 27th, and charged with misdemeanor aggravated harassment and assault, Motown, the baseball world, and the Jewish community cringed in disbelief. Some called this the end of his short career.

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig, who is happens to be Jewish, suspended Young for seven days without pay. With a $6.75 million dollar salary, that added up to $258,000 in lost wages. The Tigers were prohibited from further disciplinary action because of baseball and the players’ association labor agreement.

Young issued an apology to his friends, family, team and the community, and confessed that the whole incident was related to an alcohol problem that he will now address.

In a press conference before Saturday’s game after the end of his suspension, Young said, “I made a lapse in judgment, but I can tell you that I am not an anti-Semitic. I wasn’t raised that way, came from a good family, and we weren’t taught any of that, especially growing up in a diverse area.”

In fact it seems that the hardest part of the ordeal for Young is being branded an anti-Semite.”Me branded being racist or bigoted, that’s not me,” he said. “I have a lot of diverse friends; I live in a diverse area; that’s just not me or my character.”

And while there is part of me and I am sure many other Jewish fans, who, every time that Delmon Young is going to approach the plate for the foreseeable future, will be reminded what happened, that doesn’t have to be the case.

The entire essence of the Jewish High Holidays challenges us to seek out those that we have wronged and ask forgiveness. We ask God for forgiveness for what we did against God, and we ask friends and family to forgive us for how we let them down or hurt them in the previous year.

The Days of Awe compel us to believe that everyone deserves a second chance. Does this forgiveness extend to Delmon Young? You bet.

While the hurt in me thinks that Young and his number should be ejected from baseball, on further contemplation, that would be wrong.

Rather, let’s give Young a chance to learn from his mistakes, become a spokesperson for tolerance and most importantly, let him become an ally of the Jewish community.

The power of teshuva can turn this hurtful incident into a one that teaches compassion and love.

Young knows that one apology can’t convince people that he’s not an anti-Semite and said, “I know it’s going to take a while. I can’t smooth this thing over and convince anyone after one speech, but just go out there every day and be a positive influence.”

Delmon, if you sincerely make amends now you will be forgiven in an instant.

Here are some of my suggestions:

• Immediately make a donation to the Michigan Museum of the Holocaust – where children learn about the importance of tolerance
• Offer to visit Jewish institutions in the off-season – letting the Jewish community get to see who you really are off the field
• Make a visit to Israel – your faith will be inspired and it will give you more strength to fight your addiction
• Take some classes on Judaism

Delmon, I am sure that you can become not only a friend to the Jewish community, but that you can become a shining example of the power of teshuva, the power of the individual to transcend their shortcomings and become great.

We as a Jewish community will forgive you, and make sure that you are remembered as a great friend of the Jewish people.

_________

Rabbi Yonah is an Oxford educated rabbi who loves music, Israel and runs Jewlicious. You can follow him on twitter.com/rabbiyonah 

 

Bagel Lover’s Lament

JTA reports:

H&H bagel store to close
June 22, 2011
NEW YORK (JTA) — H&H Bagels, the no-frills bagel shop that for decades was a beloved fixture of Manhattan’s Upper West Side, is reportedly closing its doors.

The store, located at 80th and Broadway, is famous for its no-nonsense food service; customers who want a bagel with a schmear have to buy the cream cheese separately and put it on themselves.

The store reportedly will close in the next few days. Employees said H&H’s factory store on West 46th Street would remain open.

Founded in 1972, the story recently fell into fiscal troubles, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February. That came on the heels of guilty plea in May 2010 by its owner and co-founder Helmer Toro to grand larceny charges. Toro had failed to fork over some $330,000 in payroll taxes he had withheld from employees, according to The New York Times.

City Councilwoman Gale A. Brewer, who represents the Upper West Side, said the loss of the store would be a crushing blow to the neighborhood.

“It’s an institution, almost like a museum,” Brewer told the Times. “Everybody dreams of their store being a destination, but this one really is a destination. You can literally get a hot bagel at 3 o’clock in the morning, and it literally comes out of the oven in front of you.”

Cast your vote for Jewish Unity

We are in the final hours of a contest that I never thought I would be in—let alone be leading. However, thanks to amazing support from around the world, we are a couple thousand votes shy of our goal.

The winner of the UJC Heroes Contest receives $25,000 to donate to the charity of their choice. I have pledged to expand Jewlicious Festival if we win, doing more than ever before.

Can you spare a few seconds to vote? To post a link on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace?

Jewlicious Festival is a place in time for young Jews to gather, to explore, to celebrate being Jewish. It’s an event unlike any other in Jewish history, uniting people from across ethnic, social, religious and political lines.

Jewlicious is Woodstock, Jewish Summer Camp, Mt. Sinai and Burning Man rolled into three non-stop days. We had 1,000 participants last year in just one location – we hope to bring the experience to 10,000 more.

Please – take a second to vote, and spread the good news – Jewlicious Festival, a place of unity that we so badly need in the Jewish world today, is leading the UJC Hero Contest and only a few votes from our goal of 100,000.

Please – pass the word. Don’t delay – we have only until tonight, 9pm PST.

Vote now! http://bit.ly/18HEXA

May all your dreams and prayers this year be realized.

The New Israel Lobby

What would Theo and Golda think of J Street's approach to middle east peace, the future of Israel, and American Israel relations?

I subscribe to many email lists of organizations that I don’t agree with. I like to see what people are sending out to their folks, how they portray themselves to their supporters versus how they portray themselves to the world. I like to see what they really think about themselves, and by getting their stuff, you get a picture over time of their ideas and agenda. So here is a little exploration of a recent J Street email to supporters that states their aims and objectives, and most importantly, their sense of arrogance. From our Jewish brothers and sisters over at J Street:

Do Jewish Americans and other friends of Israel support President Obama’s active and balanced pursuit of Middle East peace? We have to prove that the answer to this question is yes — right now. Defenders of the unworkable status quo [who likes the status quo?] are whispering to the White House and Congress that supporting the President’s thoughtful and balanced [blame the victim is now fair and balanced?] approach to the Middle East could hurt them politically. We know that the majority of Jewish Americans – and of Americans generally – support the President’s balanced calls on Israel to freeze settlements, for the Palestinians to rein in violence and incitement, and for Arab states to take steps toward normalizing relations with Israel. [Which they have all completely rejected in today's papers.]

Each line can be dissected, and the entire letter is below the fold. Buzz words that caught my eye include “whispered” implying a Jewish cabal. “Hurt them politically” which is the SOP of Israel Lobby conspiracists. The letter ends with “All of our futures are at stake…” really? “Our” future is at stake? Or theirs? J Street is running hot and full of themselves after the Jewish summit with Obama, when their approach was the one favored by the Obama administration. I am reminded of the phrase from Pirkei Avot: Be careful in your relations with the government; for they draw no one close to themselves except for their own interests. They appear as friends when it is to their advantage, but they do not stand by someone in their time of stress. When J Street’s approach fails to bring good polling numbers to the Obama camp, I am guessing that they will no longer have the ear of the inner circle. J Street believes that American pressure is the answer! This will somehow convince Hizbollah and Hamas to give up their stated aim of destroying Israel, bring a democratic government to run a Palestinian state, get all the Arab states of the region to join in one big love hug with Israel, get Yesha to forget the Torah, and even make the lion lie with the lamb. J Street has forgotten their Torah/Bible studies. Jews are a stiff necked people, and we don’t like people telling us what to do. Even God can’t tell us. And Israelis have an extra dose of stiff neckedness. American pressure has already hardened most Israelis and as we mentioned only 6% of Israelis back Obama’s policies. The current policies are likely to continue intransigence. As soon as the Obama folks have had enough of no results on the middle east, J Street’s star will no longer shine over the White House. There are millions of pro-Israel Christians whose support Obama needs much more. I mean no ill will towards our brothers and sisters at J Street, I am not calling them names. I just think that their approach will get us nowhere fast.

Obama gives Israelis something they can agree on

Obama

Today’s NYTimes carries an Op-Ed from Haaretz Editor Aluf Benn, “Why Won’t Obama Talk to Israel?” His article is clear and concise and asks who is the fool behind the Obama administration policy on the middle-east why has Obama pursued a policy of distancing Israel and Israelis?

He points to three places where Obama got it wrong with Israel and that his policies are counterproductive at best, and downright dangerous at worst:
1-Israelis became spoiled by unfettered presidential attention.
2-Mr. Obama’s quest for diplomacy has appeared to Israelis as dangerous American naïveté.
3-Mr. Obama seems to have confused American Jews with Israelis.

Benn points to recent Jerusalem Post poll of Israelis which indicated that only 6 percent of those surveyed considered the Obama administration to be pro-Israel. In other words, the stats show that Israelis read our Presidents name as barack HUSSEIN obama. Pro-Arab, Pro-Palestinian, luke warm on Israel, and empowering Iran.

Benn’s Op-Ed, from a leading left-wing Israel newspaper, reveals that J Street has taken Obama down the Wrong Street. Obama, Rahm and Axelrod have failed to create a viable policy for the Middle East, and Hilary over in State is kept on a short leash in the dog house.

There is a great positive part of all of this.

Obama has gotten 94% of Israelis to agree on something.

Even with American Jews split on Obama’s direction, it is better for the survival of the Jewish people that Israelis are unified, than American Jews.

17 of Tammuz and Healing the Planet

Today is the 17th of Tammuz – historically a Fast Day, and day of introspection and mourning.
From OU.org

“The 17th day in the Jewish month of Tammuz, Jews the world over fast and lament to commemorate the many calamities that have befallen our people on this ominous day.
The purpose of such fasts in the Jewish calendar is, according to Rabbi Eliyahu Kitov’s Book of Our Heritage, “to awaken hearts towards repentance through recalling our ancestors’ misdeeds; misdeeds which led to calamities…” “

Recently – The Kovno ghetto was liquidated on this day in 5704 (1944) and in 5730 (1970) Libya ordered the confiscation of Jewish property.

We have a really hard time imagining that our actions can have such massive consequences in spiritual realms. However, we easily believe that our actions count when it comes to social justice or ecological terms. We recycle, we are turning to green products, we write letters about injustices in the world that we are not committing, but feel obliged to help stop. We are on the forefront of efforts to save, preserve, defend and believe that our actions however small – have an affect.

When it comes to the spiritual realm, we balk. We figure that what they said 2000 years ago about people not caring for one another, or people worshiping idols as causing the destruction of Israel – well they were just trying to pull a lesson from inexplicable tragedy. Really, we have no idea why these terrible things happen, have happened, still happen.

And it is partially true – we do not know the “why” of modern tragedies. However, we do know the “why” of ancient tragedies because our prophets told us so. Today we are poor, without prophets, without vision. However, we can look back to those ancient days, reflect upon the nature of what happened to the Jewish people, the pain they suffered, and seek in our day to fix that which was broken.

The 17 of Tammuz is not a call for everyone to keep the Sabbath – though that would be great to have a day where the world rested. Today we are offered a chance to work on the issues that created the tragedies of old, and renew our effort to change ourselves and the world. Baseless hatred caused the end of the Second Temple – animosity between Jews that was so great it destroyed us.

Showing love for our fellow Jews, and for humanity today – and every day – bring the spiritual balance back to the world that we lost so many generations ago. Kindness, compassion, caring, honoring – if we can infuse our world with more of this spiritual goodness, we will reap the benefits. The spiritual acts that we perform have global impact. An act of compassion for another person will bring peace faster than all the bottles we recycle. Transcending our own selfish needs and recognizing the humanity of the other – the 17th of Tammuz is a call to action in a spiritual campaign to heal the planet.

When Jacko went to shul

Hat tip to Stewart Wax, Happy Minyan, LA

Article taken from the NEW YORK POST, Sat. Oct 02, 1999

MICHAEL JACKSON FINDS JOY IN APPLE SYNAGOGUE
By DAN KADISON and ANDY GELLER

Michael Jackson got his wish of attending a joyous synagogue service – thanks to the magic of Uri Geller.

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