General
Good news, the Pope confirms that hell is real and eternal:
HELL is a place where sinners really do burn in an everlasting fire, and not just a religious symbol designed to galvanize the faithful, Pope Benedict XVI has said.
Addressing a parish gathering in a northern suburb of Rome, the Pope said that in the modern world many people, including some believers, had forgotten that if they failed to “admit blame and promise to sin no more”, they risked “eternal damnation - the inferno”.
Hell “really exists and is eternal, even if nobody talks about it much any more”.
I was getting nervous that maybe hell was just a figment of my imagination. As a Jew, I assume that the Pope probably thinks I am going there, but that is ok – I have been complaining about the cold for a while and hell will probably solve my problems – kind of like an everlasting trip to Miami. I can take that.
The bad news is that in October the Pope expressed issues he has with purgatory calling it “only a theological hypothesis” and not a “definitive truth of the faith.”
Bummer.
March 27th, 2007
I have never been particularly environmentally aware (pro or con) – I just like that global warming could turn Boston into San Diego. But according to this, it seems that the global warming activists are really just at war with “manliness,” and possibly meat eating, which could mean ultimately an outright attack on shwarma. If this is true then I may take up arms and join the polluting, SUV driving, Right Guard spraying masses. There is only so far you can push someone before he snaps.
March 18th, 2007
Why are my neighbors drunk and wearing green today?
At the risk of being xenophobic, according to Wikipedia the shamrock (another drunken green thing bamboozled up and down my block) was a tool used by Pat to explain the trinity to heathens. Additionally, the famous story about the snakes is probably hyperbole, but a useful tale to explain Pat’s success at riding the Isle of pagans.
Hmmm, maybe this is a holiday nice Jewish boys and girls should refrain from celebrating… I mean I like beer and all, and green is the color of spirulina, but….
March 17th, 2007
The Reform Movement is attempting to bully its way into Israeli society and religious life:
Leaders of Reform Judaism from around the world opened a conference in Jerusalem on Thursday whose agenda included a multimillion-dollar expansion of activities in Israel and a demand that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert take steps to officially recognize the movement and its conversions and rabbis.
This attempt is wrong and flies in the face of the democratic principles the Reform Movement claims to espouse.
Like it or not, the reason the views of Orthodox Jewry predominate in Israeli society and law is because the majority of Israelis identify with those values and beliefs. Over 20% of the Kenneset are representatives from specifically “Orthodox” parties (not to mention the Orthodox members from the secular parties); major cities like Jerusalem are not only Orthodox, but also predominantly Charedi (usually translated as “ultra-orthodox” – an incorrect and derogatory term) including the mayor and most of the city council. And while the bulk of the Israeli Sephardi community would not be considered “religious” in Israel, by American standards they would still be basically “Orthodox” (i.e. they keep kosher, would never intermarry, they believe in God and would never pray anywhere but an Orthodox synagogue with separate seating for men and women). The Reform Movement is simply out of touch and for the most part irrelevant to the majority of Israelis.
If Israelis identified as Reform, or even if the Reform Movement could claim a major base of support in Israel, then we would have what to talk about. But they don’t and the Reform Movement should cease trying to strong-arm and pressure the Israeli government into accepting their customs and practices, especially since they are alien and inconsistent with those of the majority of Israelis.
March 15th, 2007
I am not sure if words can describe how awesome this is:
Speaking at the induction of R&B girl group The Ronettes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the dreadlocked, chain-smoking rock dinosaur (Keith Richards) admitted he owed his life to advances in the medical industry.
“There have been great strides made in medical science lately,” he said.
“That’s why I am able to say to you, ‘Good evening ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’.”
I mean – wow. Forget sissy things like diet and exercise – just do like Keith and live forever.
March 14th, 2007
I was driving home tonight listening to the radio – “classic hits from the sixties, seventies, and eighties – the songs you grew up with” (cheesy I know, but they often play cool stuff), when the DJ mentioned this thing about “40 being the new 30.” I nearly drove into a wall, “that’s me – this is my demographic” (I am 39). When did I get to be so old? I think I am still pretty hip. But maybe not.
As shocking as it may seem, I was talking with some youngsters recently about Flavor Flav, and apparently he is a bit of a joke now with his own reality TV show and everything. I mean, I know the clock is a little silly (it was “whack” back in the day as well), but the Flav is half of Public Enemy, and they were incredible. What happened?
Worse though is that it seems that my generation has lost its mind. I didn’t have the patience to read this article, but the trend is basically that people my age (old people) dress, act, and run around like they are still 20 and hip.
Is the whole world crazy? And how did Duran Duran become cool and retro?
March 13th, 2007
For those of you who obsessively follow my professional life, you are probably wondering why I posted the new site for Aish Boston at aishboston.org and not .com.
It has to do with a phenomenon known as “domain squatting” or “cyber squatting.” Domain squatting is when some steals your name, and builds a site as you to target advertising (and send money) to him.
When I went to register aishboston.com, it was already taken by some dude in China. True, I can probably prove that there is some type of trademark violation going on, but I don’t have the time, patience or money to mount the legal attack (especially since I have to fight someone in China). Hence the reason I was forced to go with the unseemly and nerdy .org.
Cyber squatting is an issue currently being dealt with by the UN – this doesn’t make me feel any better for two reasons:
- The UN is useless
- They will eventually prove that it is Israel’s fault (and pass a resolution condemning Israel and calling for an immediate withdrawal from everywhere in order to contain this Jewish cyber menace).
March 13th, 2007
This is wild.
On a recent tour in Poland to honor the great Chassidic Rabbi, Rabbi Elimelech of Lizhensk, a prominent member of the Jewish community hit a member of the Neturei Karta, i.e. the “Jewish man who kissed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.” As an act of appreciation, this man was called up to read the Torah in synagogue. (Read the full article.)
As far as I have heard, members of Neturei Karta were on Arafat’s payroll. Anyone have any comments?
March 12th, 2007
Over 50 people were at my Purim bash this year. The room was buzzing with joy and talk about my amazing meatball subs.
“Tzvi, how did you do it? They are even better then last years!”
Yes it is true, I’ve done the impossible and improved upon my famous, although not-so-secret meatball subs.
The two major changes were:
- On the advice of my mother, I used matzo meal instead of breadcrumbs. The meatballs stuck together perfectly – many commented about how smooth and round they were (last year’s meatballs fell apart and there was a lot of “meat sauce” at the bottom of the pot).
- I splurged and didn’t use the super cheap ground beef. The extra lean made all the difference in the world – there wasn’t a three-inch layer of grease along the top and no one got sick or woozy from it.
Rumor has it that my meatball recipe is going to be published in the Boston Torah Academy cookbook. Contact the school, pre-order one for yourself and extra copies for friends and family, and let them know that the meatball subs are your main inspiration for ordering. It will help the school and I am sure some of the other recipes in there will be good too.
March 11th, 2007
I wonder if everyone is as whacked out as I am today. It seems to me that daylight savings time is nothing more than nationally instituted jetlag. Obviously the man is out to keep us hard working people down, and to strengthen our coffee addictions. Not cool.
For those who haven’t noticed, the hour-loss torture began 3 weeks earlier this year due to legislation introduced by this congressman from Massachusetts. I tried sending him an email last year, but he only accepts correspondence from people living in his district. If you happen to live in the 7th congressional district, call your congressman and tell him that his energy saving plan is a sham and that you demand your sleep back. The dark mornings make it bad for school kids waiting for buses, and hard for religious Jews to pray before work.
At least in Israel they are cool with how they time Daylight Savings. They start it right before Yom Kippur (so the fast will end an hour earlier) and begin it before Passover (so you get an extra hour to sit at the Seder and eat Matzo).
March 11th, 2007
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