Pesach Prep 5785 Begins!

Ready for Pesach?  If you're thinking "Pesach is coming when the winds finally die down" - nope, this is New Mexico, and the winds are still blowing. But Purim has come and gone, so it must be time to get ready for Pesach!

Here are a few ways we prepare for Pesach:

1.  We set the clocks forward one hour, so we can start the Seder even later than ... we used to in the good ol' days, when there was at least a chance that Daylight Saving Time wouldn't begin until after Pesach.

2.  We wake up on Shushan Purim (or the day after) with a terrible headache.

3.  We report the first Albuquerque sighting of Pesach food. This year, it was Rabbi Emeritus Arthur Flicker of Congregation B'nai Israel who reported on March 14 that the Mother Lode of Passover Food has begun to congregate at the Smith's at Constituion and Carlisle.

So far, these Pesachdik items have shown up:

Pickles, Sardines, Tuna, Beets, Chicken Soup Mix, Matzah Ball Mix, Cake Meal, Matzah Meal, Potato Starch, Strawberry Preserves, Apricot Preserves, Raspbery Preserves, Ketchup, Salad Dressing, Borscht, Gefilte Fish, Honey, Egg Matzah, Shmurah Matzah, Manischewitz Matzah.

4.  And - the best sign that Pesach is coming?  It's when we get Mesifta Beth Shraga's Bedikas Chametz Kit in the mail!

What, you may ask, is a Bedikas Chometz (Search for Chometz) Kit?

Well.  First - you do know that all chometz (food products that just might contain even a smidgen of leaven or leavened bread) must be removed from your house and / or no longer owned by you, right?

So, after all the cleaning with blunt instruments has been completed, the night before the first Seder we get down to tachlis.  What do we need?

1. A candle - so we can see into every nook and cranny to make sure there's no chometz there.
2. A feather - so we can reach into every nook and cranny and eradicate any chometz.
3. A wooden spoon - so we've got something with which we can transfer the chometz we find.
4. A burnable bag -  so we've got something into which we can place the chometz we find before burning said chometz and bag the next morning.
5. A petek - with the right legal formulae (let's not call them prayers) to absolve us of all guilty ownership of any chometz we didn't see.

Viola!  Or another stringed instrument!  Here's your Bedikas Chometz Kit!

The petek traditionally has a couple slightly different versions of the statement

All chametz, leaven and leavened bread, that is in my possession which I have not seen, removed, or is unknown to me, should be annulled and considered ownerless like the dust of the earth.

Homemaker's Hint:  If you believe what you're saying - and you should - your efforts to clean the house before Pesach need not go beyond the reasonable and customary!

Which is to say, you don't have to drive yourself crazy.  Abq Jew knows - for some of us, we don't have to drive.  We can walk!   It's not that far ....

It's Purim! Here We Go!

Purim 5785: And so it's Purim! Or at least (depending on when you're reading this) almost Purim! The celebration of topsy-turvey, when bad things turn out to be good, and good things turn out to be - also good!

How could this be? Abq Jew hears you, his loyal readers, ask.

Well, following a brief century of inactivity, we see that miracles are again on the rise. We Jews, of course, have always believed and will always believe in miracles - mostly, because they happen. Not often enough, and often not to the people (and animals) that need them most - but miracles do happen.

Especially in Jerusalem, where a phone call to Our Father Who Art In Heaven is a local call. But how about other places in The Holy Land, like Ashkelon? And Haifa? How about outside The Holy Land? 

How about Rio Rancho?

Well, maybe Rio Rancho is connected via Bluetooth. As our local TV station KOB reported on February 17th:

Construction begins on busy stretch of road in Rio Rancho

RIO RANCHO, N.M. — Construction on a new water line and road on Broadmoor Boulevard is scheduled to begin Monday in Rio Rancho.

This project consists of a new water line and new roadway reconstruction from Country Club Drive to Loma Colorado Boulevard.

Construction will last for about a year and will cost $8,436,641.10. 

However, no full lane closures are expected during the process. You can expect some delays.

“Both directions of travel will be maintained throughout the duration of the project, ensuring that traffic can continue to flow smoothly along the roadway,” the city states.

Wow! A cost "prediction" down to the penny! And with only an approximate period for construction. Clearly, Rio Rancho is talking to Someone Up There.

Note: A February 25th update to KOB's story did not mention the time frame or cost of construction. The cell service must have dropped the call.

In the meantime, here in the Greater Again USA:

While Ireland's iconic Molly Malone could soon be out of reach. It’s time to give Molly the respect she’s always deserved!

In an effort to put an end to the long-standing tradition
of tourists rubbing her for luck, local busker Tilly Cripwell’s
“Leave Molly Malone” campaign has spurred
Dublin City Council to consider elevating the statue.
The proposal would see her lifted onto a higher plinth,
complete with a commemorative plaque
that details her history and legacy.

And we'll always have Scotland ....

The Morna Louisa is a half-length portrait painting by the Scottish artist
Leonardo  McVinci in 1501 and is considered an archetypal masterpiece.
It has become the most parodied work of art in the world with McVinci's
original art piece being first copied by his Italian cousin Da Vinci
between 1503 and 1519, who named his piece "Mona Lisa" 
which translates in Italian to "My lady Lisa".
Morna can be seen above with her pet Haggis as well as
the famous Nessie even making an appearance in the background.

But we now return to our original theme: Miracles. And (of course) the Land of Israel. And (of course) Dry Bones.

And in heaven, this Purim features its very own full worm blood moon and its very own total lunar eclipse!

I Have No Other Land

The Oscars, Again: As Abq Jew is sure you have heard - No Other Land, which chronicles Israel’s demolitions in the Judaean Palestinian West Bank village of Masafer Yatta, won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

More importantly - Israeli superstar Gal Gadot, resplendent in a slinky red gown, appeared with her husband, Jaron Varsano, on the red carpet. And she also presented an award for Best Visual Effects with her Snow White co-star, Rachel Zegler, who has often posted support for Palestine.

And this year was way better than last year! The Jerusalem Post recalls:

There were many pins this year, but most, like the glittery one that Best Actor winner Adrien Brody wore, were likely apolitical fashion statements....

Last year, many red pins given out for Artists4Ceasefire were seen on the red carpet. The Brigade, a group created by pro-Israel film industry professionals after October 7, released a statement last month condemning the Artist4Ceasefire pins, which are red and depict a stylized hand, saying, 

“That pin is no symbol of peace. 
It is the emblem of Jewish bloodshed,” 

since it was inspired by a photo of the bloody hands of a member of a mob that lynched two soldiers in the West Bank in 2000. 

Everyone everyone remembers that photo.
Abq Jew will not show it here.

But back to the Academy Awards and No Other Land. 

Just three months ago (see December 2024's Korin Allal, Musician, Dies at 69) Abq Jew showcased Korin Allal's most famous song - “Ein Li Eretz Acheret” (“I Have No Other Land”). With lyrics by famed Israeli songwriter Ehud Manor.

Written in 1982 in the midst of the First Lebanon War, its haunting melody and defiant lyrics are particularly relevant today. 

Its primary message is reminiscent of the famous quotation by Golda Meir: 

“We Jews have a secret weapon in our struggle with the Arabs; we have no place to go.” 

But it goes on to pledge, “I will not stay silent because my country changed her face/I will not give up reminding her/And sing in her ears until she will open her eyes.

 Click here for video

This song reminds us of why we fight when forced into battle time and time again by neighboring countries who seek only to destroy our Jewish State.

אין לי ארץ אחרת

Ein li eretz acheret
I have no other country

גם אם אדמתי בוערת

gam im admati bo'eret
even if my land is burning.

רק מילה בעברית חודרת

Rak milah b'ivrit choderet
Just a word in Hebrew penetrates

אל עורקיי, אל נשמתי

el orakai, el nishmati
to my veins, to my soul.

בגוף כואב, בלב רעב

B'guf ko'ev, b'lev ra'ev
With a weak body, with a hungry heart.

כאן הוא ביתי

kan hu beiti
Here is my home.

*
לא אשתוק

Lo eshtok
I will not stay silent

כי ארצי שינתה את פניה

ki artzi shinta et paneha
because my country changed her face.

לא אוותר לה

Lo evater la
I will not give up on her

אזכיר לה

Azkir la
I will remind her.

ואשיר כאן באוזניה

V'ashir kan b'ozneha
And I will sing right into her ears

עד שתפקח את עיניה

Ad sheh-tiftach et eineha
until she will open her eyes.

Why is Abq Jew angry?

Because the No Other Land film stole our song - its Jewish title, its Jewish meaning, and the Jewish history it portrays. And no one said anything.

Future of Jewish has published a more complete picture of what happened at Masafer Yatta. With facts and context.

The award for Best (Antisemitic) Documentary goes to...

Of the many reviews of the newly Oscar-winning documentary “No Other Land,” none of them even hint at the facts. The film is pure propaganda meant to incite people to hate Israel.

In June of 1982, Israel Prize laureate and much-loved songwriter Ehud Manor was sitting with his wife Ofra in the living room, watching the news on television. The news item was about the First Lebanon War between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization attacking Israel from Lebanon.

Ofra recalled this event vividly: “We saw footage of Israeli soldiers entering Beirut. Ehud broke down. I’m telling you, he was weeping. He said: ‘I cannot take it’ — and then he began jotting down words on a piece of paper.”

Those words went on to become the song, “Ein Li Eretz Acheret” (Hebrew for “I Have No Other Country”) — voted time and again as Israel’s favorite song, and its title morphed into a popular catchphrase throughout Israel.

Two days ago, the 97th Academy Awards (The Oscars) gave its Best Documentary award to a film that plagiarized “Ein Li Eretz Acheret” and conspicuously spun it to demonize Israel.

Israel Bachar, Israel’s Consul General in Los Angeles, tweeted in response to the Oscars ceremony:

“If Hollywood wants to watch a Palestinian documentary,
I recommend that they watch the hundreds of hours
in which the Palestinians have documented themselves
murdering entire families, kidnapping the elderly and infants,
and committing every crime against humanity imaginable.”

In much, much happier and well-deserved news - Gal Gadot recently received the ADL's International Leadership Award. The ADL's website tells us:

Actress and Producer Gal Gadot was honored with the ADL International Leadership Award for her commitment to combating antisemitism. 

In her acceptance speech, the global icon added that 

“This is a time when many of us in the Jewish community have had to find our voice and confront the hatred against us, even if it’s extremely uncomfortable.

 Click here for video