A time to mourn: Dr Robert Levene

Mt Carmel Cemetery in KC

Last weekend I flew to Kansas City. I was in town a total of 17 hours. Then back to the airport and on to Nashville. Most of the people who attended the funeral of our friend (or for some, a family member) lived nearby and they could attend not only to the chapel and gravesite services, but also to Shiva held later that afternoon. I had to head back before the Shiva gathering.  

They say, "funerals are for the living, not for the dead." They may be right. The reason we gathered at Mt Carmel was to farewell Dr Robert Levene. For some it was cathartic; for others appropriate and polite; for me, it was very personal. Bob and his family had moved to our neighbourhood when we were about 10, and he and I became fast friends. We were both November babies, and thus usually among the youngest in our classes. He was 10 days my junior.  Early on we played together, sometimes with others from the school or the synagogue to which we both were regular in attendance. He and I were very often playing singles tennis until the middle of junior high school. We were in the same class in Hebrew school and graduated there in 1966. We rode bikes together. I remember a time Bob was over at my house and my parents were gone somewhere. My sister was 'in charge' and for whatever reason she determined it necessary, she chased him out of the house with a broom. Needless to say, Bob didn't return very soon after that.

Hebrew school graduation

We played chess and had tournaments at his house or ours. Other Jewish boys from the neighbourhood joined us. We loved science and had a chemistry club in at least my garage, maybe in his, I don't remember. Nowadays we would have video evidence from our TikTok and YouTube channels, but back then, nope. All we had and have is our memories.

Maybe that's why we attend funerals. To recapture the lost memories. To remember. To remind ourselves we were not always 73 yearss old. Of course, memories are often seen through glasses that are rose-coloured. Especially as times increase between them and us from hours to days to decades. So one person tells a story, and without a challenge, those stories will now remain true for all time. And as each person passes out of our spheres, less corroboration is possible. Oh for a journalist among us who would keep the truths and keep them accurately. 

Dr Bob as he came to be known was a searcher, an inquisitive, a man of 20,000 books in his library, which no doubt will be dismantled. He ended his life with some significant satisfaction. In the final week, he got to see his grandchildren who are both pre-school aged. What a treasure that is to Bob's two sons and it was to him as well, I'm sure. 

We argued about so many things, and in his most lucid moments over the last five years, those arguments were healthy and cordial, loving and respectful, as all debates ought to be between friends. He wondered about eternity and his final resting place. He listened as I explained my views on God, on Jesus, on resurrection and eternity. I bought him a Bible and had his name engraved on the front. Another time I brought him a couple of DVDs from the tv series "The Chosen" and according to his attendants, he really enjoyed watching those. 

We stopped playing tennis back in school days, and Hebrew and chemistry gave way to other pursuits, but friendship knows no bounds and no insurmountable obstacles. In the last 18 months I've lost some men in KC with whom I walked in my youth, like Dave Rabinowitz and Danny Kass, like Hyman Seifer and now Levene. 

When I return to visit my sister and some local KC family and friends, a piece of my life will be missing. I'm a better man for knowing Dr Bob. Maybe he was better for knowing me, but that's not for me to know or at this point, even to consider. 

Today, what am I going to do to make the world in which I live a better place? Tennis has given way to pickleball. Chemistry has given way to other academic interests, especially history. Synagogue continues and has widen to messianic interests and the Gospel Truth has replaced true-enough thinking. 

Each day I age, but only one day at a time. Our lives in Prairie Village gave way to St Joseph for him and New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington, DC, and Sydney Australia for me. But home is where the heart is, and our hearts were ever together then, and he remains in mine to this day. Funerals are for the living. 

...then they came for the Jews...

I'm in almost shock as I read the news from Bondi this week. And the rest of the Jewish community is beyond unhappy as well. Waverley Council has knocked back the appeal of its citizens for a new synagogue to be built on Wellington Street. Maybe they would say, "Too many cars" or "not enough parking" or "the grading of the footpaths needs to be improved." But not one of those excuses were even mentioned. Why would the synagogue not be allowed to build on its property it owns already?

According to news.com.au, the Council "banned the construction of a synagogue in Bondi because it could be a terrorist target, in a shock move that religious leaders say has caved in to Islamic extremism and created a dangerous precedent. The decision, which has rocked the longstanding Jewish community in the iconic suburb, was upheld in court this week as the nation reeled from the alleged airline terror threat and debate raged over increased security measures at airports and other public places.
The Land and Environment Court backed the decision by Waverley Council to prohibit the construction of the synagogue, because it was too much of a security risk for users and local residents.
Jewish leaders are shocked the decision appears to suggest they cannot freely practice their religion because they are the target of hate by Islamist extremists — and that the council has used their own risk assessment of the threat posed by IS against it."

Yup, that's what it says. "they cannot freely practice their religion because they are the target of hate by Islamist extremists"

The hashtag OneWayReligiousTolerance is my phrase for this madness. Let a Muslim seek to build a mosque in Lakemba or Auburn and let the local council there deny their request because of security reasons. You will see marches in the streets; you will see terror and hostility like never before.

Look, to be fair Pastor Niemoller was not a stalwart pro-Jewish Lutheran pastor (compare Dietrich Bonhoeffer) but his quote is too good to miss. We must speak out on behalf of those Bondi Jews. We must stand up for religious freedoms, especially if the synagogue will maintain its own security, as it does worldwide, and certainly here in Sydney at schools and other synagogues.

Shame on the Waverley Council.
Let's write our local members (MP) .
Let's write our Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull (twitter to @TurnbullMalcolm) and demand someone notice this travesty of justice, actually injustice. Or else Niemoller would be shouting "What will you do when they come for you?"

For more read the Daily Wire article which cites the News report on the 3rd. Read it here.

Is that a real mitzvah?

The man in this video is Scott Rogowsky. He has a twice a month live show in NYC, as well as a series of videos and each one has irony and humor and repetition. I think my friend Bennett Arron would have as much fun as Rogowsky if he had a video guy following him around all day. But the point of this is to discuss the idea of a mitzvah.

What is a mitzvah anyway? By definition, it's a commandment. But by practice, the word means 'the completion of a commandment', thus a religious activity which complies with something in the Jewish religion. So handing out food to homeless people is 'doing a mitzvah' or wrapping oneself with leather straps (tefillin) in the morning and praying certain prayers is fulfilling the commandment of doing so, thus 'performing a mitzvah.'

In the video below, according to Rogowsky, after 10 hours of walking in New York City as a Jew, during a Jewish holiday named Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles), many Jewish men accosted him and tried to get him to 'do a mitzvah.' Of course, the whole thing is probably staged, but still the video got me thinking. Watch it first, and then I'll comment.

See VIDEO

I've had Jewish religionists approach me in various locations worldwide, here in Sydney, and in Melbourne, in Moscow and in Israel, in Washington DC, and Baltimore...all asking me to do some religious activity and thus 'do a mitzvah.' One in Sydney even told me that he could help me put on the leather straps in 30 seconds and 'voila, that would be it.' Wow, a discount, a rapid fulfillment. One man I know told me that he was actually told he had become 'Bar Mitzvah' by some rabbi on the streets in Sydney, because he repeated some words he didn't understand, while donning a kippah (skull cap).

This is shocking on so many levels.

And the real question I have is 'is that a real mitzvah' anyway? If we say words we don't understand, and use props we don't regard as significant... if we jump through certain hoops of others' invention but it's not from our own heart, is that doing good? Is that honoring the God who wants us to do good things?

Yeshua taught about something like this with "When you pray, you are not to be as the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, in order to be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you and when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition, as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need, before you ask Him" (Matthew 6.5-8)

I remember back in the 1970s when people in orange saffron robes would chant 'hare rama' and "hare krishna' and try to get others to say those same words. "Please, say 'hare krishna'" they would beg. As if my saying a phrase about which I was clueless and which had no meaning to me would somehow incant meaning and bring their deity to the moment. Those four syllables were just a combination of syllables which were empty and void to me. I get it-- they had great meaning to those robed people, but to me they were empty. Why would I ever repeat them?

There are people who want others to 'ask Jesus into your heart' and be saved. I've honestly never seen the phrase "ask Jesus into your heart' in the Bible, but I understand what these born-again evangelizers are asking of others. The more biblical phrase would be 'repent of your sins and be born again by the blood of Jesus.' But that might be too much for some people. So perhaps the evangelizers are trying to make the Gospel more marketable. Perhaps they are simply asking people to do what they themselves did those days/ months/ years ago. I really do not know what is working in their minds. But jumping through another's hoops of religion without the meaning and the conviction in your own heart... it will never work.

Perhaps that's why the apostle Paul said "if you confess with your mouth Yeshua as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation." (Romans 10.9-10)

It really does take the heart. No wonder Solomon the king of Israel said, "Guard your heart, for out of it proceed the issues of life." (Proverbs 4.23) Paul again wrote something similar, "not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Messiah, doing the will of God from the heart." (Ephesians 6.6) That's the key in any and every mitzvah.

Will you take this to heart? That itself is a mitzvah!

Not good enough?

As a religionist I often am met with questions about God's approval from those who are either seeking such or who used to do so. "Will God be happy with me if I ..." or "I'm trying to be a better person because recently I ..." as if I'm in a confessional booth (foreign to my Jewish life) or somehow have a hotline to their Almighty. I'm grateful to those who welcome my input and who are seeking to know something from heaven about their lives. For them and for you, let me share a story that involves this photo from my childhood.

Actually the photo is of a single store of this hamburger chain, which when I was about 8-20 years old, was located near my synagogue. (This photo is from another location in Kansas City. I remember the smells of the grease and the fun in having a quarter (25 cent coin) in my pocket and going to get one of their Smak burgers and returning with change leftover.

Usually that would not have been such a big deal, but if I went on the Sabbath, and purchased one, well, that was another story. You see Orthodox Jews like I was, are not supposed to carry on the Sabbath, especially no money, are not supposed to work (nor support those who do) on the Sabbath, and certainly not to eat non-kosher food as this clearly was. So I was a violator. But I lived with (all) that.

I especially remember one day, about 2 in the afternoon. It was in September or so and I was about 14. The year before I had been Bar Mitzvahed and became an adult in the community. I became responsible to comply with Jewish regulations and to represent Jewish people worldwide. The autumn day was crisp and clear. It was Yom Kippur, the most serious of days in the Jewish calendar and one on which we fast, from evening (before) to evening of. A mere 25 hours or so, but to a 14-year-old, that was borderline unbearable. 

We had attended synagogue the night before and then returned home to rest. That morning my mom and dad and sister and I went back to synagogue to pray and be forgiven of our sins or just to check the boxes aright so as to be considered "good Jews." There were two services held simultaneously. One for the adults and one for teens downstairs. I, of course, went to the teen service and it ended about 1 pm. Many of us hung out together sharing stories of all kinds. Some went upstairs to join their parents, others went home, and no one went to the shopping center where we often went on the Sabbath at certain times.

I was 14. It had been 19 hours since I ate and I 'was starving.' I had a quarter with me. (Don't ask.) You can feel the tension rising, can't you? Would I misbehave on the most important day for Jews everywhere? Would I break several commandments?

Yes, I did. I walked the half block away from synagogue to Smaks and got myself a burger. It was so satisfying. So refreshing. The pickles and onion and the dollop of ketchup (tomato sauce) felt so right. Ah, now I can make it all the way to 7 pm and eat the dinner Mom would prepare on our return from synagogue.

After I downed the burger with great speed I walked back to synagogue. I re-entered and went to the seats with my parents. I joined in the afternoon prayers. After a few minutes, my mother asked me where I had been. "Downstairs," I would have told that part of the truth. She took hold of my suit jacket and pointed to the end of my white shirt's sleeve. Ketchup! As obvious as the rabbi's beard, this red stain was not to be hidden. It screamed "BURGER" and my mother heard it. Then my father. And whoever else, I don't remember, but this I do remember--- I had failed miserably that day. Shame joined the list of feelings I had. Caught. Heads shook. My love of Judaism shrank in a heartbeat.

____

I guess I share this story to remind myself and to tell you that even on the holiest day of the year, you will fail. You are never going to be good enough to satisfy God, or your parents, or your rabbi, or your wife, husband, school, ... And even if everyone DID say you were wonderful and kind and generous and lovely and 'always do the right thing' you would know, if you know about the Living God, that He has standards that are so high and lofty that no one, not even your mother (and I'm writing this on Mother's Day) could reach those standards. We all fail. None of us is good enough.

So if that be so, why be a religionist at all? Why try to placate Him?  If He will never be happy with me, what kind of relationship can we ever have?

Ah, just because I say you cannot be perfect does not mean He doesn't love you. He wants to be in relationship with you. He wants to hug you, when you are good or when you have ketchup on your sleeve. He knows your human condition. And maybe that's why the person of Yeshua (some call him 'Jesus') is so awesome. He knew what was 'in man.' He knew the human condition since he was born in Bethlehem, lived among people in Israel, and died at the hands of Roman soldiers and a kangaroo court about 2000 years ago.  He died to forgive you of your sins and to bring you back into relationship with His Father.

Performance-based religions are going to leave you empty. What Yeshua did for you is how you are approved. What you do for God is good and all, but it will never get you into heaven. You have stains on you, deeper than your shirt sleeve. Your soul is spotted and stained with sin. God alone can forgive you of those and sustain you in relationship with Him.

Would you (honestly) like that just now?
Would you like to be assured of being His and being approved?

It's not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit.  Won't you trust Him now? Confess Yeshua as your saviour and your deliverer from sin. Profess Him to others and if you would like, I'd love to hear from you, too.

That day will be your Day of Atonement. And you will know you are approved. Enjoy that reality; it's better than change in your pocket.

It's Jewish to believe in Jesus

Lately a couple Jewish men in their 60s have professed faith in Messiah Yeshua. And their stories, half a world from one another, have the same ring to it. Their self-evaluation is twofold. One, they are more at peace and have a life that handles situations so much better as a result and two, they are still Jewish. Now to be fair, we've been saying and hearing this for a long time, but that these two gentlemen are saying it so clearly this month to me is noticeable.

"Don"* in the US South says, "ever since deciding to declare my acceptance of Yeshua, I have felt a greater sense of calmness and serenity.  I now know that this was and is the right decision, and the right path for me to follow.  The key to this sense of fulfillment and calmness is in the understanding that first and last, I AM STILL A JEW.  This is also the reason why continuing to be involved with the synagogue here doesn’t cause me any stress.  After all, I am the same person I was before – a committed Jew – just less conflicted over my thoughts and feelings about how to either accept or ignore Yeshua"

"Pete"* in Australia writes, " Just read the article on forgiveness. Thought you'd find some interest in it. 

Forgiveness is something that up until now has been somewhat very difficult for me to truly feel and provide. I admit to harbouring many thoughts and feelings of hate, revenge and scorn for some throughout my life until now, but somehow those harmful sentiments have become those of pity and sadness for those that had hurt me.  

The support of the Prince of peace in my life has been the most wonderful enhancement making my existence so much more fulfilling. 

Wishing you a true Shabbat Shalom. 

With love"

They both continue in synagogue. They both love the women in their lives and are continuing to live a stable life in that regard. God is overseeing their walk with Him and that's so comforting to those of us in ministry.  They still observe Shabbat. They will continue to study the Bible, including the Newer Testament. One has gone forward in immersion (Messianic mikveh) and the other will consider that, too. 

They are not the only ones doing this. My friend "Gavin"* has been walking with Messiah for a few years and only recently began sharing what he believes with others at his synagogue.  He finds it exciting and helpful to them, to those with whom he's sharing, to pass on to them what he believes.

Last Thursday night we had Bible study on Exodus chapter 9 and I shared about compromise and overcoming that in a 'face-like-flint' approach to life. I said, "Living a life of convictions makes others to know what we stand for, and gives them a chance to follow as well."

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I guess my feelings today are filled with pleasure as I ponder how these men and so many others are living honestly, living forthrightly, living a Jewish life in recognition of the Prince of Peace, Yeshua from Nazareth, who died for our sins and rose from the dead. He's awesome. He's worthy of your consideration also. Won't you ask Hashem who Yeshua is? And listen for the answer?

Shabbat shalom.

* Not his real name