Parsha Shemos was/is the 15th Yahrzeit of Rabbi Glixman TzZal.
Parsha Shemos Part 2
I return to where I left
off last week. Moshe killed the taskmaster either by DIVINE NAME (which we only
see later on in our Parsha), prayer or physically.
15 Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to
slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of
Midian; and he sat down by a well.
It must have been an
oral law that nobody can draw water from a well unless he or she is the owner
16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters;
and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's
flock. 17 And the shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood
up and helped them, and watered their flock. 18 And when they came to
Reuel their father, he said: 'How is it that ye are come so soon to-day?'
They were there to tease
and try to abuse the girls. Moshe was a former prince of Egypt trained in
martial arts and a military leader. There is a Midrash with Moshe conquering an
African Land and being its king.
19 And they said: 'An Egyptian delivered us out of
the hand of the shepherds, and moreover he drew water for us, and watered the
flock.' 20 And he said unto his daughters: 'And where is he? Why is
it that ye have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.'
An 80year old with fight
in him makes him sort of younger.
21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man;
and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
Yisro was a G-D fearing
man and an intellectual. Moshe was very happy to be with this man. His
forefathers came from Avraham and knew hospitality very wel
24 And
God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with
Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God saw the children of
Israel, and God took cognizance of them.
Does this Pasuk imply
that up unto now G-D forgot the Bnei Yisrael? No but rather the time for
redemption and molding them into a nation was not ripe. We shall see from
Parsha Shelach Lecha that it took one generation of freedom to remove the slave
mentality and free them.
3:1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro his father-in-law,
the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the farthest end of the
wilderness, and came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb.
Yisro had worshipped
each G-D expect Baal Peor if I recall the Midrash correctly. However, he was
tending to believe in HASHEM. He learned that this mountain was where he spoke
to G-D. He had prophecy and was one of the three wise men who consulted with
Pharaoh along with Bilaam and Iyob about the astrologers seeing a redeemer of
Yisrael. He said do good. Bilaam said kill the babies and Iyob fled after he
heard Bilaam. Yisro was rewarded with Moshe as a son-in-law. Iyob received the
pains and losses. Bilaam died at the hands of the Bnei Yisrael.
2 And the angel of the LORD
appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked,
and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
I must investigate this
strange phenomena of a bush on fire that is not burned up.
3 And Moses said: 'I will turn
aside now, and see this great sight, why the bush is not
burnt.' 4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God
called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said: 'Moses, Moses.' And he
said: 'Here am I.'
But when Moshe arrived
up the hill near the bush, he was in for the shock of his life.
5 And He said: 'Draw not nigh
hither; put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou stand
is holy ground.' 6 Moreover He said: 'I am the God of thy father, the
God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses hid his
face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
The L-RD had come down
into the bush and through Zimzum (condensing HIMSELF from filling the universe
into a bush).
7 And the LORD said: 'I have
surely seen the affliction of My people that are in Egypt, and have heard their
cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their pains; 8 and I
am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring
them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with
milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the
Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. 9 And
now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto Me; moreover I have
seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come now
therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth My
people the children of Israel out of Egypt.'
I am making you a
Shaliach to free the Bnei Yisrael from Pharaoh.
11 And Moses said unto God: 'Who
am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children
of Israel out of Egypt?' 12 And He said: 'Certainly I will be with
thee; and this shall be the token unto thee, that I have sent thee: when thou
hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this
mountain.'
You will return here
with Am Yisrael to serve ME.
13 And Moses said unto God:
'Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them: The
God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me: What is
His name? what shall I say unto them?' 14 And God said unto Moses: 'I
AM THAT I AM'; and He said: 'Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel: I
AM hath sent me unto you.' 15 And God said moreover unto Moses: 'Thus
shalt thou say unto the children of Israel: The LORD, the God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto
you; this is My name for ever, and this is My memorial unto all
generations.
I WILL BE WHAT I WILL
BE. This is more powerful for the first is controlling the present and the
second is controlling the future.
16 Go, and gather the elders of
Israel together, and say unto them: The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God
of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, hath appeared unto me, saying: I have
surely remembered you, and seen that which is done to you in
Egypt. 17 And I have said: I will bring you up out of the affliction
of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and
the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, unto a land flowing with milk
and honey. 18 And they shall hearken to thy voice. And thou shalt
come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say
unto him: The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, hath met with us. And now let us
go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may
sacrifice to the LORD our God. 19 And I know that the king of Egypt
will not give you leave to go, except by a mighty hand. 20 And I will
put forth My hand, and smite Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in the
midst thereof. And after that he will let you go.
The family unit has always
been the strong bond in Judaism and the elders controlling the youth from going
too astray as a grandparent – grandchild relationship is more positive than the
parents as grandparents are rarely disciplinarians because the parents raise
the child and they give love and advice to the youths. Also there is a hierarchy
in respect.
21 And I will give this people
favor in the sight of the Egyptians. And it shall come to pass, that, when ye
go, ye shall not go empty; 22 but every woman shall ask of her neighbor,
and of her that sojourns in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold,
and raiment; and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and
ye shall spoil the Egyptians.'
They will go out of
Egypt with great wealth.
4:1 And
Moses answered and said: 'But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken
unto my voice; for they will say: The LORD hath not appeared unto
thee.' 2 And the LORD said unto him: 'What is that in thy hand?' And
he said: 'A rod.' 3 And He said: 'Cast it on the ground.' And he cast
it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before
it. 4 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Put forth thy hand, and take it
by the tail—and he put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a rod
in his hand—5 that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers,
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto
thee.'
Because he spoke Lashon
HaRa 'they will not believe me' he got Tsoras on his hand.
6 And the LORD said furthermore unto him: 'Put now
thy hand into thy bosom.' And he put his hand into his bosom; and when he took
it out, behold, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. 7 And He
said: 'Put thy hand back into thy bosom.—And he put his hand back into his
bosom; and when he took it out of his bosom, behold, it was turned again as his
other flesh.—8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee,
neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the
voice of the latter sign. 9 And it shall come to pass, if they will
not believe even these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou
shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land; and the
water which thou take out of the river shall become blood upon the dry
land.'
This would be a forerunner
of the first plague.
10 And Moses said unto the LORD: 'Oh Lord, I am
not a man of words, neither heretofore, nor since Thou hast spoken unto Thy servant;
for I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.' 11 And the LORD said
unto him: 'Who hath made man's mouth? Or who makes a man dumb, or deaf, or
seeing, or blind? Is it not I the LORD? 12 Now therefore go, and I
will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt speak.'
Moshe has a speech
impediment but it is the L-RD who makes people dumb or mute.
13 And he said: 'Oh Lord, send, I pray Thee, by
the hand of him whom Thou wilt send.' 14 And the anger of the LORD
was kindled against Moses, and He said: 'Is there not Aaron thy brother the
Levite? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to
meet thee; and when he sees thee, he will be glad in his
heart. 15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put the words in his
mouth; and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you
what ye shall do. 16 And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people;
and it shall come to pass, that he shall be to thee a mouth, and thou shalt be
to him in God's stead. 17 And thou shalt take in thy hand this rod,
wherewith thou shalt do the signs.'
Your rod will be your instrument
in making the signs and wonders.
18 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his
father-in-law, and said unto him: 'Let me go, I pray thee, and return unto my
brethren that are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive.' And Jethro said
to Moses: 'Go in peace.' 19 And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian:
'Go, return into Egypt; for all the men are dead that sought thy
life.' 20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an
ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt; and Moses took the rod of God in his
hand. 21 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'When thou go back into Egypt,
see that thou do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in thy hand;
but I will harden his heart, and he will not let the people
go. 22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh: Thus saith the LORD: Israel
is My son, My first-born.
I promised Yeruham, the
son-in-law, of Rabbi Glikman not to write down the stories of the Rabbi but
leave it to the family. Unfortunately after 15years nothing is written. I will
write a little abstract of one story on this Pasuk with the Rav. One day a
panicked non-Orthodox Jewish Mother came to Rabbi Glixman. Her son was about to
go off with missionaries to convert to Christianity. He was given a lot of
questions by the Missionaries to challenge the Rabbi. Slowly but surely the
Rabbi had an answer for each. Now the final question 'the cream of the cream'
was what about HE gave his "only son" on the cross. The Rabbi then
opened up an English-Hebrew Chumash. He brought him this this Pasuk and said go
and read what this says. How can there be an only son when Yisrael is the first
born? After some time, the potential Christian said to his missionary friends,
"You lied to me." The whole Rabbi Glixman story is about 15 minutes verbally
so hint, hint Yeruham we are waiting for the book.
23 And I have said unto thee: Let My son go, that
he may serve Me; and thou hast refused to let him go. Behold, I will slay thy
son, thy first-born.'
Mida Kneged Mida – you hurt
my first born, I will kill yours.
24 And it came to pass on the way at the
lodging-place, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. 25 Then
Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his
feet; and she said: 'Surely a bridegroom of blood art thou to me.' 26 So He let him alone. Then she said: 'A bridegroom of blood
in regard of the circumcision.'
Moshe might have been
Patur from certain Mitzvos as a Shaliach Mitzvos but not from a Bris as he had
to drink and eat and it gave him enough time to make a Bris and have a short
meal. Therefore he was put in danger.
27 And the LORD said to Aaron:
'Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.' And he went, and met him in the
mountain of God, and kissed him. 28 And Moses told
Aaron all the words of the LORD wherewith He had sent him, and all the signs
wherewith He had charged him. 29 And Moses and Aaron
went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel. 30 And Aaron spoke all the words which the LORD had spoken
unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. 31 And
the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had remembered the
children of Israel, and that He had seen their affliction, then they bowed
their heads and worshipped.
Acknowledgement to G-D.
5:1 And afterward Moses and Aaron came, and said unto Pharaoh:
'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Let My people go, that they may hold a
feast unto Me in the wilderness.' 2 And Pharaoh said: 'Who is the
LORD, that I should hearken unto His voice to let Israel go? I know not the
LORD, and moreover I will not let Israel go.' 3 And they said: 'The God
of the Hebrews hath met with us. Let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey
into the wilderness, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest He fall upon us
with pestilence, or with the sword.' 4 And the king of Egypt said
unto them: 'Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, cause the people to break loose
from their work? Get you unto your burdens.'
You have too much
freedom must give you less time to think of complete freedom but must work twice
as hard.
5 And Pharaoh said: 'Behold, the
people of the land are now many, and will ye make them rest from their
burdens?' 6 And the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the
people, and their officers, saying: 7 'Ye shall no more give the
people straw to make brick, as heretofore. Let them go and gather straw for
themselves. 8 And the tale of the bricks, which they did make
heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish aught thereof; for
they are idle; therefore they cry, saying: Let us go and sacrifice to our
God. 9 Let heavier work be laid upon the men, that they may labor
therein; and let them not regard lying words.' 10 And the taskmasters
of the people went out, and their officers, and they spoke to the people,
saying: 'Thus saith Pharaoh: I will not give you straw. … ' 20 And
they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from
Pharaoh; 21 and they said unto them: 'The LORD look upon you, and
judge; because ye have made our savor to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh,
and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay
us.' 22 And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said: 'Lord, wherefore
hast Thou dealt ill with this people? Why is it that Thou hast sent
me? 23 For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Thy name, he hath
dealt ill with this people; neither hast Thou delivered Thy people at all.'
6:1 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Now shalt thou see what I will
do to Pharaoh; for by a strong hand shall he let them go, and by a strong hand
shall he drive them out of his land.'
ROSH CHODESH SHEVAT WILL BE
ON YOM SHENI (Sunday night Monday).
Parsha Va'era
As I wrote above today,
I found myself dozing off with each comment. Perhaps one time in all these
years I am writing an excuse note.
Many years ago when I
started writing my commentary on the Parsha, I would write a summary of the
Parsha. Short and sweet quite easy about Pharaoh heaping burdens on the Bnei
Yisrael. Moshe and Aaron returning and Pharaoh not believing the miracles
because of the Magics up until the plague of lice that becomes "the finger
of G-D". That was me about 18 to 20 years ago. It is not my standard now.
Next week, I am hopefully going to catch up on this Parsha and Parsha Bo.
But I will tell you what happened to my wife and I this
week culminating in one of our worse days - in my 74.5 years and since my wife
is younger than I her 21+years as she can drink and vote not to mention that we
have a son over 50 and a grandson over 25. But women are always young even if
they are great-grandmothers. My wife was still reeling from losing her mother
on the 10th of Teves and even dizzy from lack of sleep.
The Israeli Tax system
charges you interest for the past years taxes starting with Jan. 1st
of the next fiscal year even though most of the data is only available in May.
Nice and fair politicians.
I have this nasty
Minchag (custom) of not wanting to pay fines. So when after nudging my Israeli
accountant a few times going into his office, I went twice this week and quoted
Rabbi Yacov London TzZal "I am angry very angry" in Hebrew in a tone.
I also said, "You know I am a Rabbi and don't over-turn desks to move
things, but I expect my taxes done by Dec. 30th the last bank
transaction day of the fiscal year."
In the background was a
flight that I planned in the future for my wife, I and my forester son. I have
not received a refund from British Airways after they changed my flight
schedule to be about 34 – 39 hours door to door from Israel to FL or 29 – 33hours
in air transit from take-off to landing which does not consider traveling to
and from the airports and going early through security. Suddenly, I had instead
of half the price of El Al the choice to by a direct flight but out laying the
money prior to traveling.
Then came the shock, I
had an Israeli tax bill for last year which on one hand made me feel good that
I earned so much that I had such a bill but hurt my pocket. The solution was
selling some losing companies that were once good that went south like ATT and
GE. So I have some losses on the book for this tax year and traded in the money
for winners.
I took a few financial
gut punches but feel wealthy as it says in Perkei Avos, "Who is wealthy?
He that is happy with his lot." I don't have the money of George Tsoros but
did not become wealthy by picking watches and jewelry from holocaust victims.
He also is unhappy that the world is not yet socialistic so he is not wealthy
according to Perkei Avos despite his millions.
On Thursday, I went to
my garage with an auto less than 7 years on the road, automatic gear and 35,000
km or something like 22,000 miles. The gear was gone on a Japanese Car. Another
financial punch in the gut. With G-D I feel like Tennyson's Light Brigade
"Not to ask the question why but to do …"
In the meantime, my wife
drove Menashe to the Interior Ministry to renew his passport. First he forgot
his ID Card so she had to return and then she released that she did not have
the original court document that she is his sole guardian. Then there was a
dispute with the clerk that involved to bosses over the clerk as it was not
written sole guardian but solely guardianship. B"H it went easier for her
with the original burial certificate to obtain a death certificate regarding my
mother-in-law.
Thursday, about an hour
before the banks closed we went to pay our taxes and the accumulated interest
which was very high for a country that sells bonds at 1% or less per year. Then
the credit card did not work as we passed our limit. A quick call to the credit
card company and then a transfer of money from a bank that I sold stock
accumulated for years to cover the taxes. All in all a big mess.
I never usually get
phone calls but right after Mincha-Maariv had three at the same time. Today, I
went to pick up my car and the whole week with worry slept less. So if you
wonder why I only learned a little Orach Chaim with Rabbi Mimran Shlita instead
of Yeah Deah too as I was exhausted. So finally, I had a bit of an excuse not
to write the commentary on the Parsha.
Oh yes, I also get a few
Rabbinical Questions here and there and am following the studies and news about
Omicron as I may have to issue a Pasak and back it up.
Jewish
Mathematician and his Ethical Problems working on The Bomb.
New
film ‘Adventures of a Mathematician’ follows Stan Ulam, who lost nearly his
entire family in the Holocaust, as he helps his new
homeland's nuclear efforts during and after WWII.
On July 16, 1945, researchers
working on the Manhattan Project got a chance to see the results of their
top-secret wartime efforts for the United States government when they were
invited to attend the first-ever test of an atomic bomb, nicknamed Trinity,
near their lab at Los Alamos, New Mexico.
One researcher declined to go —
Polish-Jewish mathematician Stanislaw “Stan” Ulam. Although he became central
to the development of thermonuclear weapons, Ulam’s work on the bomb haunted
him for a long time afterward. His story is shared in a new film, “Adventures
of a Mathematician,” directed by German filmmaker Thor Klein.
“The basic question was, would you
build the atomic bomb if you knew that Hitler was building it?” Klein told The Times
of Israel over Zoom. “Most of us, including me, would agree with that scenario,
that it’s something we should do. Then the war ends, the world changes, and we
move on. [After that] it gets more complicated. Why are you building the
hydrogen bomb? It’s a more complex discussion to have.”
Klein sees similarities with ethical challenges today: “You
think about artificial intelligence, all the biotechnology, all of that,” he
said. “It’s not only a moral dilemma here, it’s the story of people,
relationships… All of that I wanted to explore in the film.”
As Ulam worked on the bomb, virtually all of his family was
stranded in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe — except for his younger brother,
Adam, whom he had sent to live with their uncle in New York. At Los Alamos,
Ulam could only turn to two people for support — his wife, Francoise, and his
friend and Manhattan Project colleague, John “Johnny” von Neumann.
Inspired by Ulam’s autobiography of the same name, the film
was recently released in the US, France and Russia, and has been on the
festival circuit since last year. Klein was able to show the finished version
to Ulam’s daughter, Claire Ulam, before she died last year.
“It was really a gift that I will always be grateful for,”
he reflected.
Over a decade ago, Klein first learned about the
mathematician at his hometown library in southwestern Germany, through the book
“Who Got Einstein’s Office?” by Ed Regis. He read not only about Einstein’s
work at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, but about two other
researchers who worked there — Ulam and von Neumann. Like Einstein, both were
Jewish emigres from Europe — Ulam from Poland, von Neumann from Hungary.
Klein calls the duo “people who grew up in a very
particular time, raised in a very particular way, the belle epoque across
Western Europe, broadly educated, very cultured people.”
The film notes two significant achievements credited to Ulam. The
Teller-Ulam design (which also honors his Los Alamos colleague Edward Teller)
has underpinned thermonuclear weapons since their creation, while the Monte
Carlo method became useful not only for research into the bomb, but also for
computers and biology. Its name reflects its creator’s longtime interest in
gambling. A quote from Ulam reflects his bemusement at the impact of his ideas:
“It is still an unending source of surprise for me how a few scribbles on a
blackboard or on a sheet of paper could change the course of human affairs.”
Klein himself wanted to be a mathematician when younger, before his literature
teacher suggested he was more interested in the stories behind mathematics than
in mathematics itself. As a filmmaker, he draws storytelling inspiration from
past greats like Stanley Kubrick as well as the more contemporary Darren
Aronofsky, whose film “Pi” also looks at math, albeit through the lens of the
stock market.
Klein’s interest in Ulam’s story stretches back for years. In film school,
he read the mathematician’s autobiography — which had more details about his
friendship with von Neumann — and eventually got the green light to option the
book into a film.
“The basic
question was, would you build the atomic bomb if you knew that Hitler was
building it?” Klein told The Times of Israel over Zoom. “Most of us, including
me, would agree with that scenario, that it’s something we should do. Then the
war ends, the world changes, and we move on. [After that] it gets more
complicated. Why are you building the hydrogen bomb? It’s a more complex
discussion to have.”
Over a
decade ago, Klein first learned about the mathematician at his hometown library
in southwestern Germany, through the book “Who Got Einstein’s Office?” by Ed
Regis. He read not only about Einstein’s work at the Institute for Advanced
Study in Princeton, but about two other researchers who worked there — Ulam and
von Neumann. Like Einstein, both were Jewish emigres from Europe — Ulam from
Poland, von Neumann from Hungary.
Klein calls
the duo “people who grew up in a very particular time, raised in a very
particular way, the belle epoque across Western Europe, broadly educated, very
cultured people.”
The film
notes two significant achievements credited to Ulam. The Teller-Ulam design
(which also honors his Los Alamos colleague Edward Teller) has underpinned
thermonuclear weapons since their creation, while the Monte Carlo method became
useful not only for research into the bomb, but also for computers and biology.
Its name reflects its creator’s longtime interest in gambling. A quote from
Ulam reflects his bemusement at the impact of his ideas: “It is still an
unending source of surprise for me how a few scribbles on a blackboard or on a
sheet of paper could change the course of human affairs.”
Klein
himself wanted to be a mathematician when younger, before his literature
teacher suggested he was more interested in the stories behind mathematics than
in mathematics itself. As a filmmaker, he draws storytelling inspiration from
past greats like Stanley Kubrick as well as the more contemporary Darren
Aronofsky, whose film “Pi” also looks at math, albeit through the lens of the
stock market.
Klein’s
interest in Ulam’s story stretches back for years. In film school, he read the
mathematician’s autobiography — which had more details about his friendship
with von Neumann — and eventually got the green light to option the book into a
film.
When the
original leading man had to pull out, Polish actor Philippe Tlokinski joined in
a serendipitous casting call.
“He started
reading in front of the camera and I knew that was it,” Klein said. “I had a really
strong feeling that this is the right person for Stan.”
French
actress Esther Garrel portrays Francoise and Polish actor Fabian Kociecki plays
Johnny. Shooting mainly took place in Germany and Poland, although some of it
was done near Los Alamos, at the Ghost Ranch, the former home of artist Georgia
O’Keeffe, who knew Ulam. Klein worked on editing the film closer to home — in
his living room — with French editor Matthieu Taponier, whose credits include
“Son of Saul.”
The original screenplay spanned 150 pages and included many additional
characters, “even Enrico Fermi, a good friend of Stan,” Klein said. “At some
point, I had to condense.”
He focused on Ulam’s journey from the East Coast to the western US,
describing it as an immigrant story. When the film begins, Ulam is on a
fellowship at Harvard. He lives with his teenage brother, Adam, and makes
increasingly desperate phone calls to Poland, begging the operator to keep
trying to connect him with his family there.
“Every day took a toll,” Klein said.
Life
becomes more complicated for Ulam after he falls in love with Francoise Aron, a
French Jew who is studying at Mt. Holyoke College in western Massachusetts. He
makes a marriage proposal that relies more on logic than romance, yet it
ultimately succeeds. Then von Neumann convinces him to join a mysterious
project on the other side of the country. He sends Adam to stay with their
uncle, damaging the brothers’ relationship.
“Stan was
the older brother, more or less the only parent — or figure that could be a
parent — left,” Klein said. “He, at the same time, had to leave for Los Alamos.
It made their relationship not easier. These were very formative years for a
teen.”
At Los Alamos, Ulam joins an eclectic group of scientists,
from the brilliant but temperamental Teller to a conscience-stricken American
named John Calkin to the German Klaus Fuchs, who is spying for
the Soviets. Collectively overseen by J. Robert Oppenheimer, their goal — at
least initially — is to beat the Nazis to the bomb. Yet they keep working after
V-E Day.
When Ulam finds a way to create the
hydrogen bomb, he tells Francoise, but wonders whether he should share it with
Los Alamos. His misgivings throughout the project are reflected by his absence
from the Trinity test.
“That intrigued me, his decision not
to go to the test,” Klein said.
The viewer, too, does not see the
explosion — something the director intended.
“I think, first of all, everybody
has seen the vision of the mushroom cloud,” Klein said. “It’s become an icon of
pop culture, Einstein’s head and the mushroom cloud. The image doesn’t have a
value any longer. It detracts from the message.”
Yet the tensions behind making the
bomb are omnipresent.
“It was very layered, very complex,
something always there, sometimes outspoken, sometimes not outspoken,” Klein
said.
The scientists engage in heated
discussion, with arguments both for the bomb (that it will protect their
children) and against (that it will cause the deaths of soldiers and
civilians).
For Ulam and von Neumann, there were further complexities.
“These guys were from Central and Eastern Europe,” Klein said. “The Jewish
topic hung above them.”
He noted, “From 1943 on, [people] knew there were death camps,” although
not necessarily the full extent.
Stan, Adam and Francoise Ulam all lost their families in the Holocaust.
“[Stan] could hide his pain better than Adam probably could,” Klein said.
“In Adam’s case, this was a result of survivor’s guilt. For him, he was the
only one [in their immediate family], apart from Stan, to survive. I think he
was troubled his whole life from it.”
Adam Ulam went on to become a prominent Sovietologist at Harvard.
“The bond and love never died between [him and Stan],” Klein said. “I
wanted to show, at the same time, unresolved conflict.”
A different kind of unresolved conflict shadowed Ulam and von Neumann
following the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
“They found themselves in a situation where the bombs were used and people
died,” Klein said. “Even if you see it in the equation of the Cold War — we
have to do this in order to keep everybody safe — of course it did something to
them as people.
“In Stan’s case, he used humor as a form of coping with it in difficult
situations. Jokes were such a characteristic element for him. This was not an
antidote, it was like a medicine, the use of jokes and humor. But it could
never resolve the contradiction in their lives.”
The Girl Who Refused to Write on Shabbos by Etti
Hazan
In my childhood home in Rome, Italy, it was not uncommon to hear
tales of our heroic ancestors, the hardships they endured and the obstacles
that they had to overcome in their quest to observe Judaism to the fullest.
My father, Rabbi Yitzchak Hazan,
was raised in a religious family in the Soviet Union. Throughout the 1950s and
’60s, my grandparents and their children were hounded by the authorities for
daring to stand out and observe Shabbat and
holidays. They lost their jobs, were under near constant surveillance and had
to sacrifice so much to observe the mitzvot that
many of us take for granted today.
One story that stands out is a true tale of bravery displayed by
my Aunt Batya Cohen.
A year older than my father, sixth out of 14 children, Batya was
a good-natured woman who enjoyed regaling us, her extended family, with her
memories of Russia—from the sweet rozhinkes (raisins) they
ate, to a quirky individual who showed up for illegal minyan in their humble home.
My dear Aunt Batya tragically passed away, recently, on the
eighth of Kislev. My siblings and I paid a
Zoom shiva call to our father
in Rome, who then traveled to Israel to
sit shiva with
his siblings.
Foremost on everyone’s mind was the following story in which
Batya stood up to the Soviets in her determination to properly keep Shabbat
without violating any of its laws.
The story begins a few years earlier, when my grandparents
realized that they had no choice but to send their children to the local Soviet
public school in their town of Bolshevo, to keep the authorities off their
backs. The children thus attended on weekdays, working diligently to maintain
good grades and helping any of their peers who fell behind. At home, they were
tutored in Judaic studies by their parents and a learned family friend whose
help my grandfather enlisted.
There was a problem, though, which eventually reached a boiling
point. The town functionaries and school administrators had noticed that
the Chazan children were not
attending school on Shabbat. My grandparents were called to meetings and
interrogations, where they endured severe intimidation and attempts at
humiliation. How could their children grow up to be good Soviet citizens when
they were missing so many days of schooling?
The mayor threatened to take my grandfather to court, where they
would have been at a great disadvantage. The danger was very real; it was
understood that the children would be removed from their loving home and placed
with non-Jewish families.
My grandfather gathered his children and explained the gravity
of the situation. It was decided that the school-age children would take turns
going to school on Shabbat. They would, of course, sit in class without writing
or drawing—actions that are forbidden on this holy day.
The following Shabbat coincided with Rosh Hashanah. The boys were needed for the minyan, which
was usually held in their home, although this time it would be in the home of
another religious Jew. The girls stared at each other until Batya, then aged 11
or 12, stood up and volunteered to be the first to attend school on Shabbat.
Batya’s school bag was placed in her classroom on Friday, and
thus she departed her home empty-handed that Shabbat day, avoiding the need to
carry. Before leaving, she asked her father to wait for her return before
making Kiddush for the festive Rosh Hashanah meal.
Throughout the morning, my grandparents waited apprehensively,
praying, with Batya heavily on their minds.
Finally, Batya returned from school, and the family swarmed
around her, asking for a minute-by-minute recounting of her day.
“Our first class was math,” she began. “The teacher asked me to
come to the front and solve a problem on the blackboard. I told her I am not
permitted to use chalk on my Sabbath. The
teacher grew angrier and angrier as she tried to force the chalk into my hand.
She yelled so loudly that the principal and vice principal came in to check on
the commotion.
“Both of them tried to force me to hold the chalk and solve the
problem, but I stood my ground. I was surrounded by angry adults a my
classmates looked on, dumbfounded. Before I knew it, the mayor of the town, who
was visiting the school, walked in. The teacher told him I was refusing to
write. The mayor berated me, but I responded that today is a holy day and that
I could not write.
“The mayor then asked to
see my math notebook. He leafed through it and noted that my grades were
impressive. Inspired, he grabbed the chalk and asked me to solve the problem
verbally. I concentrated and called out the numbers,
which the mayor wrote on the board.
“He then asked the teacher if I had solved the problem
correctly, and she nodded in assent. The mayor took my notebook and wrote down
the highest mark. He then told the teacher not to bother me anymore—to just let
me sit and listen in class.”
A similar scenario repeated itself in the remaining classes throughout
the day until Batya was finally able to go home and breathe a sigh of relief.
Though this reprieve didn’t end the persecution of the Chazan
children or their parents, with her bravery Batya set an example for the rest
of her siblings, including my father, who always held their heads high and
remained steadfast in their beliefs until they were finally able to leave
Russia in the summer of 1966.
Morocco – remains of early Jewish
Community in Atlas Mts. Found. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319443
Milestone: Desmond Tutu, 90,
antisemitic Bishop. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319261
Milestone: Edward O. Wilson, 92,
"Ant Man". https://www.timesofisrael.com/edward-o-wilson-pioneering-biologist-known-as-ant-man-dead-at-92/
Milestone: Jack Feldman,95,
"What's that number on great-grandpa's hand" Holocaust Survivor. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319469
Milestone: Harry Reid, 82, former
Senate Leader. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319453
Milestone: Morris Rosenthal, 97,
rocket scientist in early space program. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319514
Inyanay Diyoma
Iran has a drill against an invasion
by Israeli troops. Hint I doubt if Israel would take
over Lark Islands with troops to invade oil port that is easily bombed or
missile from air. https://www.debka.com/irans-guards-drill-mock-israeli-invasion-threaten-to-enrich-uranium-to-weapons-grade/
Iran warns Israel on Friday. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/r1z5h4xjf
Ed-Op Lieberman is reckless and
dangerous. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/syijaazok
Achievement of the year was
replacing Netanyahu. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319227
Attacker on Jew in London during
Hanucha was a man who wanted to kill Jews. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319222
Rapist of his own children grants
wife divorce after being limited more in prison. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319208
Over 100 car pile-up in Jackson WI. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319207
German Police discover Nazi Altar
and guns in E. Germany. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319224
South Shore Jewish Community in
Montreal disbands. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319226
Anti-Israel President in Chile. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/24/jews-in-chile-concerned-about-future-relations-with-israel-under-left-wing-anti-zionist-president-community-head-says/
James Webb Telescope launched. https://www.timesofisrael.com/worlds-most-powerful-telescope-ever-blasts-off-into-space/
U. of Haifa uses Hubble Telescope
investigates Black Holes. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319146
Xmas Pope prayers for Pandemic's End. https://www.timesofisrael.com/on-another-subdued-christmas-pope-prays-for-pandemics-end-peace-dialogue/
Kite Boarder wins hushed up gold
medal. https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-kiteboarder-who-won-gold-medal-in-oman-says-organizers-hushed-her-win/
J. Kushner raises $3billion for new
firm. https://www.timesofisrael.com/jared-kushner-raises-over-3-billion-in-committed-funding-for-new-firm-report/
Ed-Op need vaccine Mandate. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/b1d8qf1it
US Ambassador Courts Israeli Arabs. https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/h14lw3yst
2 homeless men die of hyperthermia. https://www.timesofisrael.com/2-homeless-men-die-within-hours-in-bat-yam-of-apparent-hypothermia/
Woman, 24, dies of Cellphone Fire. https://www.timesofisrael.com/woman-24-dies-in-yanuh-jat-fire-suspicion-blaze-caused-by-cellphone-that-ignited/
Pregnant Woman, 31, dies of flu. https://www.timesofisrael.com/pregnant-woman-31-dies-of-flu-in-jerusalem-amid-rise-in-cases-baby-born-healthy/
Israeli Digital Satellite Firm. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/24/israeli-satellite-firm-chasing-bezos-musk-and-branson-in-space-tech-ambitions/
4th Dose of Vaccine
delayed by panel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/4th-covid-vaccine-dose-clinical-trial-delayed-after-key-panel-holds-up-approval/
UAE Astronaut delivers Israeli Flag
from Space. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hy200brgjt
Window with further talks with Iran
will close within weeks. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/23/us-national-security-adviser-tells-israeli-media-us-sees-window-for-further-iran-nuclear-deal-talks-closing-within-weeks-as-vienna-meetings-resume-monday/
Maryland Cops investigate
antisemitic flyers on Covid. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/23/maryland-cops-investigating-antisemitic-covid-19-fliers-distributed-by-neo-nazi-gdl-organization/
Hezballah has 2000 UAV's. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/23/hezbollah-amasses-2000-drones-as-iran-builds-uav-army-report-warns/
Bennett – Lapid get a lesson in math from Charedim. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/23/the-non-orthodox-get-another-lesson-in-israeli-electoral-math/
Omicron hospitalizations less
likely. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/r1hwwsgoy
Guard who attacked Ben Gvir had a
police record. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319170
Jewish Artist asks Swiss Museum to
remove work after Nazi display. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319172
Lack of confidence in IDF. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319128
2 Democratic lawmakers hijacked. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319171
Trumps takes executive privilege to
Supreme Court. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319188
IDF told soldier don't wander around
Ramle. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319155
Helicopter crashes and Minister
swims 12 hours back to shore. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319159
Rabbi in
Beitar Illit says nail polish for secular women. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319127 My wife says he can take a hike.
Two dead in N. Hollywood CA
shooting. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319180
Former Police officer found guilty
of shooting black man. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319185
Biden agrees let's go Brandon. https://www.aol.com/news/parent-uses-wing-slur-during-200900658-235403725.html
Attempted shooting near Shechem. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319243
Appeasement of Hamas (it will not work). https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-said-planning-to-ease-restrictions-on-gaza-pressuring-hamas-to-keep-the-calm/
Man arrested for distributing
antisemitic flyers. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319229
Iran will keep Uranium at 60%. Give me a break. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319249
1000 flights cancelled due to Covid.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319250
Israel signs deal for thousands of
Pfizer's Covid Meds. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319248
Expecting egg shortage due to bird
flu. https://www.timesofisrael.com/hundreds-of-thousands-of-chickens-to-be-culled-as-bird-flu-spreads-egg-shortage-due/
Omicron cases triple. https://www.timesofisrael.com/daily-covid-cases-near-1800-as-new-restrictions-for-malls-set-to-start-monday/
Lack of security with cyber
penetration. https://www.timesofisrael.com/terrifying-cyber-weapon-against-which-theres-no-defense-experts-on-nsos-spyware/
Have to reward the vaccinate not
collective punishment. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hy0wtjejf
The amazing power of Jewish Women. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319215
35 test positive in nursing home. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319234
Bedouin teens hurled rocks at buses.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319237
Syrian Port attacked by planes after
Iranian Shipment. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319382
Iran and Hezballah helping the
Houthis. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319304
Former Iranian Minister criticizes
the supreme leader. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319309
PA and Qatar in deal to bring
Israeli Gas to Gaza. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319303
Tel HaShomer Hospital starts tests
on 4th dose. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/h1oeprujy
Israel may
scrap travel curbs. https://www.ynetnews.com/travel/article/sjacaziiy
Covid infection among Israeli
Children up 50%. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/bjk1vxiit
Two called "Dirty Jews" in
BKLYN. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319380
Popular Charedi Author accused of
sexual misconduct commits suicide. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319333
Chief Rabbi of Safed, Shmuel Eliyahu, who was
presiding over the hearing, issued a statement shortly after Walder's death. "It is too
bad he chose this path. We had offered him the option to fix what he had
broken. To apologize to his victims. To change his ways. To ensure that no more
women would be harmed," he said. "We send strength to the many
victims in these difficult times. Their lives precede his life."
Antisemitic flyers found in MO. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319371
Ganz wants to relocate Yeshiva. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319372
Israel to scrap travel curbs. https://www.ynetnews.com/travel/article/sjacaziiy
Combat vs. Technology Army Service
and one's future. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3925556,00.html
No lockdown for New Years. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/sj2nr9hsy
Israel will offer booster 3 months
after second shot. https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/sj95sldiy
Lapid warns that Israel can and will
act alone against Iran if necessary. https://www.ynetnews.com/article/s1onktpof
Over a third of food produced goes
to waste. https://www.timesofisrael.com/2-5-million-tons-of-wasted-food-last-year-cost-country-6-billion-report/
Soon Chabad of Saudi Arabia. https://www.timesofisrael.com/in-saudi-arabia-a-rabbi-angles https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319303-to-lead-a-jewish-community-that-doesnt-exist/
Israel wants to double Golan
Population. https://www.timesofisrael.com/this-is-our-moment-israel-okays-major-plan-to-boost-golan-double-its-population/
Electric Power Powder Grid to bring
Israeli gas to Gaza. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319303
Bennett in isolation but Bibi forces
him to Knesset. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319273
Govt. to compensate tourism
industry. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319269
Miracle alert: Terrorist
gun jams leading to arrest of large Hamas Cell. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319269
Qatari women's rights activist
missing. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319275
Israeli Start-up removes sugar from
drinks without hurting taste. https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/israeli-startup-removes-sugar-from-fruit-juice-without-spoiling-the-taste/
New Translation of Bambi shows
allegory to Austrian Persecution of Jews. https://www.timesofisrael.com/new-translation-of-bambi-showcases-tale-as-allegory-on-early-austrian-antisemitism/
Bird Flu outbreak. https://www.timesofisrael.com/5000-dead-cranes-counted-at-hula-lake-reserve-amidst-bird-flu-outbreak/
Brother of Mossad Chief is Charedi
and survived Meron Disaster. https://www.timesofisrael.com/everything-went-silent-mossad-chiefs-haredi-brother-recalls-deadly-meron-crush/
Yacov Litzman will not run for the
Knesset. https://www.timesofisrael.com/haredi-mk-yaakov-litzman-says-he-will-not-run-for-knesset-again/
Defense Dept. Worker shot on Gaza
Border tank replies. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319479
Large increase in terror in 2021 in
the Shomron. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319430
Two Jews who returned to Judaism via
Yad L'Achim to celebrate two marriages. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319477
Religious Affairs Minister hopes
Rabbi Lau will permit his liberal conversions. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319448
Rabbi Lau on author suicide and
indecent acts. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319483
Charedi rips Lieberman, Hendel over
their dispute with Chief Rabbi on Conversion. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319487
Trauma for Charedim over scandal https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319414
Sixth person dead in Denver
Shooting. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319452
Protecting the North from Terror. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/27/israel-fortifies-northern-shield-on-lebanese-border-to-protect-civilians-against-rocket-attacks/
Antisemite of the Year named: https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/27/chair-of-ben-jerrys-board-voted-as-2021-antisemite-of-the-year-in-watchdog-poll/
Neo-Nazi
Goyim Defense League attacks Gays. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/28/supporter-of-neo-nazi-goyim-defense-league-charged-with-hate-crime-following-anti-gay-assault-in-san-diego/
Ed-Op Bederman How about life with
dignity. https://dianebederman.com/death-with-dignity-how-about-life-with-dignity/
Ganz and his benefits to Abu Mazen. https://www.debka.com/gantz-heaps-benefits-on-palestinian-leader-eying-his-claim-as-next-premier/
Iran
claims it launched 3 satellites. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319547
Iran
opens fake accounts on Social Media to create demonstrations and havoc in
Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/report-aiming-to-sow-chaos-in-israel-fake-accounts-target-likud-activists-online/
Arabs
attack Jews in Shimon HaTzadik Neighborhood. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319518
Maxwell
found guilty. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319516
Swastikas
at Montreal Skating Rink. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319522
Honduras
wants strong ties w/Israel. https://www.timesofisrael.com/outgoing-honduras-president-christians-parliament-will-protect-strong-israel-ties/
Consumers
boycotting companies that are raising the prices in larger percentages. https://www.timesofisrael.com/outrage-boycott-calls-grow-as-food-giant-osem-announces-price-hikes/
Dershowitz
on Tutu and his antisemitism. https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/319428
NYT
uses Tutu to push antisemitism. https://www.algemeiner.com/2021/12/29/new-york-times-seizes-on-tutu-death-to-push-israel-apartheid-narrative/
Have a wonderful,
healthy Shabbos and a peaceful Chodesh Shevat,
Rachamim Pauli
