Jewish Entertainment

“Nice Jewish Girls Gone Bad” is a refreshing mix of comedy, music, spoken-word and show-stopping burlesque, told by the gals who learned to smoke at Hebrew School, got drunk at their Bat-Mitzvahs and would rather have more schtuppa than the chupah, featuring performers seen on Comedy Central, HBO and MTV. These badass chosen chicks boldly dare to
deconstruct years of tradition, expectations and guilt in a fast-paced vaudeville extravaganza, complete with kick lines, punchlines and a rendition of “L’chaim” with a fist in the mouth. This ain’t yo’ mama’s “Fiddler”!

Duration : 0:6:34

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: comedy, Jewish, women

This is a performance I did of the Yiddish classic, “Dona Dona,” on the ‘jewish entertainment Hour,’ a cable show broadcast out of New York City, in 2001.

I grew up singing the ENGLISH version made popular by Joan Baez at summer camp. It wasn’t until I was an adult and discovered Eastern European jewish music (= often referred to as “Klezmer” music) and started studying Yiddish that I learned that the song was actually originally written in Yiddish for the Yiddish Theatre.

Accompanying me on piano is New York’s AMAZING pianist, arranger, composer, and musical director, Alex Rybeck.

———————————————————

More from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

“Donna Donna” (דאָנאַ דאָנאַ “Dana Dana”, דאָס קעלבל “Dos Kelbl”) was a very popular song in America, and also in a number of other countries, for example, in Japan it has long been sung in schools.

History

The song was written as “Dana Dana” in Yiddish, for the musical play “Esterke” (1940-1941); words written by Aaron Zeitlin, music written by Sholom Secunda. Both of them were Jews, and the song was written in days of Nazism. The song was prohibited in South Korea as a communist song [1].

The first translation into English was made by Secunda himself but did not become popular. The song in English became well known as “Donna Donna” when it was translated approximately in 1956 by Arthur Kevess and Teddi Schwartz. The song became especially popular after the performance of Joan Baez in 1960 and Donovan in 1965, and was even featured on “More Chad & Jeremy”, a Capitol Records compilation of standards sung by the British duo.

The song has been translated into many other languages including German, French, Japanese, Hebrew, and Russian.

The song has been sung by many singers including André Zweig, Joan Baez, Donovan, Chava Alberstein, Esther Ofarim, Theodore Bikel, Karsten Troyke, Hélène Rollès in duet with Dorothée, Claude François, and Russian ensemble of the Jewish songs on Yiddish “Dona”.
Lisa Fishman also commands an amazing opera version aired on the Jewish Entertainment Hour, which is a cable show broadcast out of New York City, in 2001. It can also be found on the soundtrack to the anime “Revolutionary Girl Utena”.

———————————————————

PS: To all Yiddish speakers: I am aware of my lyric flub in verse 2 — It was a live performance and I momentarily blanked!

PPS: I didn’t know until just now when I copied and pasted the ‘Wikipedia’ article that my performance is actually mentioned in their piece — wow!

PPPS: THANK YOU SO MUCH to everyone who has posted their sweet and informative comments here! — I SO appreciate it!

warmly,
lisa

Duration : 0:5:2

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Dona, Fishman, Jewish, Klezmer, Lisa, Yiddish

Jewish boys dancing at jewish wedding to the cherva song yehei yehai sheloma rabo

http://www.apple770.com for more jewish entertainment

Duration : 0:4:6

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: Bochurim, Chabad, Chevra, Dancing, Jewish, jews, Satmar, Wedding

judge judy mobile DJ case disc jockey bar mitzvah tv show jewish contract law entertainment

Duration : 0:10:0

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: bar, case, contract, disc, DJ, entertainment, Jewish, jockey, judge, judy, law, mitzvah, mobile, show, tv

Excerpt
The following is an excerpt from the book Not In Kansas Anymore
by Christine Wicker
Published by HarperSanFrancisco; September 2006;$13.95US/$17.95CAN; 0-06-074115-5
Copyright © 2006 Christine Wicker

2.

Eat Only Chicken the Day of the Game

I don’t believe in magic, of course. Hardly anybody does, but we all live by it. It permeates our lives every day, and we wouldn’t give it up for all the science on earth. Most of us can’t. We can’t because we aren’t aware of how completely we live within its thrall. Who can break a bond they don’t know exists?

My first magical lesson came when I was five. I was playing with the crippled girl who lived down the street. We didn’t like each other much, but being the only children in the neighborhood, we made do with each other in a grudging, bickering way. At one point in our play she took two bananas off the kitchen counter and told me to pick the one I wanted. I wanted the bigger one. I knew I shouldn’t take the big banana. To take it from a crippled girl would be especially bad. But I wanted it. So I took it.

At this point, in defense of myself, I’d like to mention that I was cross-eyed. I’m not saying that cross-eyed trumps crippled, and to be completely truthful, it wasn’t much of a factor in my case — morally speaking, I mean — because I didn’t know I was cross-eyed. No one had mentioned it, and I wasn’t an observant child.

I might have forgotten about the bananas by now except that mine had a big brown soft spot in it that ran all the way down the side. About two inches of my banana was edible. Her banana was perfect, and she ate it while I watched. If I had been generous, she would have been eating the rotten banana.

I knew what this meant. Somebody was watching, keeping score. It was God maybe. Who it was didn’t matter. What mattered was that I got the message. I never have taken the big banana again. I’ve never taken the biggest piece of chicken or the last scoop of mashed potatoes or the cookie with the most chocolate chips. I’ve never pushed anybody aside at the bargain table. I say to myself that I don’t care as much about such things. I don’t want them as much as other people do, but that’s not the truth. The truth is that I am still ruled by the bad magic of the big banana.

I was smart enough not to tell anybody in my family about it. If I had, they would have given me the horselaugh and brayed, “Taught you a lesson, huh?” I didn’t call this experience magical even to myself, but it clearly was, just as magical as that bad witch who wasn’t invited to the party and got so mad that she cursed poor little Sleeping Beauty.

It was a curse for sure. Luckily the big banana curse was a minor, manageable spell, evoked by my behavior and not by a capricious universe. The behavior it evoked dovetailed well with my Christian upbringing. But the lesson of the banana was deeper even than Christian teachings because it didn’t have to be taught. It had been experienced, and it seemed to affirm something basic in the fabric of reality. It didn’t, of course. But it seemed to.

Life went on. My eye got fixed, sort of. The doctors call it satisfactory. It turns outward a little instead of inward a lot. It hasn’t been much of a handicap, as far as I know, and it has helped me
some. I understand outsiders in a way that not everybody does. Or I try to. Not because I’m smarter or more sensitive, but I know how it feels to be among those who can be summed up with one word of physical attribute. There are lots of them — cross-eyed, fat, crippled, bald, weak-chinned, spastic, crazy — and knowing what that feels like makes me listen harder. Or try to. If I wanted to make it a joke, I’d say I look at the world askance. Nobody who knows me would disagree with that.

I grew up. I became a big-city newspaper reporter, which is not a hopeful or fanciful or magical profession. If anybody had asked me two years ago to describe the age we live in, I’d have painted a picture right in line with what the world’s wise thinkers expected of me, except that it would be utterly dismal.

I’d have said science is our true God. I’d have said that we live in a world of marvels gone stale, adrift in an empty cosmos. We hear no voices but our own. We believe no omens, listen to no oracles. If otherworldly visions come to us, we close our eyes. And we never, ever think that we might have some great task, noble destiny, or grand calling. Such thoughts are generally believed to indicate a need for medication.

That’s how lots of people would describe life, but if an extraterrestrial were to watch these nonbelievers as they go about their lives, it would become quite clear that they do believe in much more than a material, soulless world. I first began to know about these hidden beliefs because I wrote a book on Lily Dale, a western New York community of Spiritualists where people have been talking to the dead for five generations. I wrote the book because I thought people with such extravagant ideas were rare, an oddity, something strange that would excite wonder. What a chucklehead.

Whether the dead talk back is a matter of contention, of course. I was careful about that, not wanting to be branded a crazy. But it didn’t matter. In writing the book, I’d been transformed. I’d become a person who could be told things. People all over the country started coming up to me in bookstores, at meetings, during parties to tell me stories they didn’t usually share with strangers.

They’d often start by glancing to each side. They would shrug as if they weren’t to be held responsible for what was coming. Then they’d say, “I don’t know what this means,” or, “I’m just going to tell you what happened.” One by one they came, butchers and bakers and candlestick makers. Few would have described themselves as believers in magic.

Once, for instance, I was in a Bible Belt state with a group of women who raise charitable funds for children’s hospitals. I talked about my book on the town that talks to the dead. When the talk turned to spirituality, heads nodded about the room as several women attested to their strong belief in Jesus Christ as their own personal, living savior and to their complete reliance on the Bible as the direct word of God, suitable for any occasion. I thought, Oh, boy. I hope they don’t go to praying and try to save me. I hadn’t needed to worry. They finished dessert, and then they lined up to tell me things.

“My mother read tea leaves all her life. If a relative was about to die, she always knew it,” said one. Another told me that her husband had second sight. His whole family had witnessed it.

The eighty-year-old former president of the group reached into her bosom to pull out a silver cross with a little charm next to it.

“Know what this is?” she asked.

“It’s the evil eye,” I said. According to magical theory, the eye on her charm would stare down the evil eye if it were directed toward her.

“Evil eye. That’s right. I’m Greek. All the Greeks wear them. Even the children.”

A blond woman of middle years asked, “Have you ever known anyone who had the evil eye put on them?”

“No,” I said.

“Well, someone put it on my daughter,” she said.

The daughter was about eighteen months old. She and her family were strolling along a New Jersey beachfront boardwalk when a man approached them. He was an actor from a fun house and was dressed in a monk’s robe. He had a rope around his waist. From it hung a cross, which he was twirling.

“Oh, what a beautiful child,” he said, looking intently at their daughter. Then he began to follow the family, continuing to stare at the little girl.

The man’s focus was so strange and his tone so eerie that the father turned the child’s stroller around and began pushing it away from the man, faster and faster until the family was practically running to escape. That night the child fell ill. She had a high fever and began throwing up. The next day she was still sick and crying constantly. A child who had always loved men, now she wouldn’t go to any of the men in the family. The mother’s sister had been on the boardwalk when the actor approached, and she was troubled by his actions. She called their aunt, who was of Polish heritage.

“He’s put the evil eye on her,” the aunt said. “You’ll have to remove it.” The mother’s sister was to take four straws from a broom and throw them over her shoulder into the corners of the room as she said a litany of Polish words. She was then to take a fifth straw, burn it with a wooden match, and drop it into a glass of water. They were to give the baby a spoonful of water from the glass.

“Make sure you do exactly what I told you,” she said, “and don’t let anyone who doesn’t believe be in the room when you do this.”

The mother, who didn’t know Polish, was so frightened that she would foul up and kill her daughter that she couldn’t do the spell. So her sister did it. The baby fell asleep immediately and slept four hours. When she awoke, the fever was gone and so was her fear of men.

“Are you telling me the truth?” I demanded. But I knew she was. She was as wholesome as Thanksgiving dinner and probably sat in the front pew of the Baptist church every Sunday.

Kids upchucking in the night and then getting better the next day isn’t all that unusual, but I didn’t say so because she knew that already and my saying it would have missed the point. The point of the story was that evil is alive, and good can defeat it in magical ways. It’s a good story, and the last part makes it better. No one told the little girl about that night, and she was too young to remember, but for the rest of her childhood she feared men in monk’s robes and would cry whenever she saw them.

As I heard a hundred tales and more, I also began to see magic everywhere, planted deep in the stuff of everyday life and flourishing. Britney Spears appeared on the cover of Entertainment Weekly wearing a red Kabbalah cord on her wrist. Paris Hilton had one, and so did Madonna, who adopted the name Esther to go along with her new faith in Jewish mysticism. The cords, which deflect the evil eye, were so popular that the Kabbalah Centre, where the stars go for instruction, tried to patent the string, sold for $26 to $36. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office declined that application.

Go into any large bookstore in America and you’ll find several books on regional ghosts and haunted places. Ghost hunters and ghost busters work all over the country. E- Bay sells haunted dolls and teddy bears. One week’s auction offered a haunted tuning fork, a haunted milking stool, a haunted gravestone rubbing, a haunted blanket, and a haunted bathtub.

Magic also penetrates our lives in ways that are quite mundane. It’s at the car repair shop when the engine stops pinging as soon as the mechanic appears and begins to ping again only when you pull out onto the street. It’s in the beauty salons when hair that spikes about your head like a scarecrow’s coiffure turns supple and silky on the day of the appointment. It’s at the restaurant when diners arrive only after the waiter sits down with his own plate and smokers’ food comes only after they’ve lit up.

You’ve heard of voodoo economics perhaps? Money magic is the most pervasive of all. Of course it would be, since money itself is the ultimate magic, a piece of paper that can do everything. Everyone wants good money magic, a way to win the lottery, gambling luck, an unexpected check in the mail, but the money magic of everyday life is more often bad. Win some money, get a bonus, have a little inheritance, and a major appliance will go out, the kid will get sick, a tire will go flat. Once you’re as poor as you were before the money arrived, life returns to normal. It’s as though there’s some kind of balance sheet that makes sure we stay at exactly the same level of prosperity all the time.

These are matters of life’s proceeding that hardly need to be commented on. They’re so common that they show up in jokes, and no one looks bewildered or wonders what’s being talked about. Trot out all the scientists you want, arm them with a million statistics. It won’t do any good. We know these things.

I often heard people talking about inanimate objects as though they were alive and powerful. This can opener never works for me, someone might say, or the bus always comes early when I’m running late. Or I always have to kick the machine before it will start. Or this computer only works for Mark — it hates the rest of us. Or it never rains when you’ve got an umbrella. No one is serious, you say? Maybe not, or maybe they’re whistling in the dark. It doesn’t matter which because language creates reality. What we name is what we notice, and that’s another argument for the inherent strength of magic. We’ve been programmed to ignore as much of it as we can, and still it pops up.

Copyright © 2006 Christine Wicker

Christine Wicker
http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/eat-only-chicken-the-day-of-the-game-61848.html

The Entertainment Division of The Jewish Federation is a dynamic group of entertainment and media professionals who participate in a wide variety of educational, social, and volunteer opportunities to benefit the Jewish community locally and aboard. If you are interested in philanthropy, the Jewish community, networking or simply having fun, the Entertainment Division has something for you. Whether you are a media mogul or an up-and-coming young executive, we hope you will join us in giving back!

Duration : 0:2:57

Read the rest of this entry »

Technorati Tags: entertainment, industry, Jewish, nonprofit, outreach

Whatever is constantly on your mind is what you become. To put it another way, you are what you think. Want to become a saint? Then read, study, and take to heart — the New Testament. Want to become a moral degenerate? Then read, study, and take to heart — pornography. We can’t help it. That’s the way we are made. Whoever we associate with, whatever we read, whatever we watch on television, whatever we allow our minds to dwell on, becomes, in time, our character and our destiny.

Paul understood this principle. “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)

On the other hand, he cautions us: “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14)

And finally he gives us this straightforward warning: “Bad company corrupts good character.” (1 Corinthians 15:33)

Here is what we must reject: anger, arrogance, bitterness, cowardice, deceit, envy, evil thoughts, folly or foolishness, greed, hate, hypocrisy, jealousy, lust, pride, rage, selfish ambition, and worry. If we give anyone of these sins of the mind or spirit, free reign, it will destroy us. Let’s briefly examine what Jesus and his disciples had to say on each of these sins.

Anger

We are to control our anger; we must not allow our anger to control us. Jesus put it this way: Anyone who is angry with his brother is subject to judgment. Anyone who says, “You fool!” is in danger of the fire of hell. (Matthew 5:22)

Paul cautions us: “In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” (Ephesians 4:26-27) Again Paul says: Get rid of anger. (Ephesians 4:31)

And James advises us: “Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.” (James 1:19-20)

Arrogance

Jesus condemned arrogance in his repeated statement: “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12) (Luke 14:11) (Luke 18:14) Jesus also addressed arrogance in the Gospel of Mark: Arrogance makes a man unclean. (Mark 7:21-23)

Bitterness

Paul and the writer of Hebrews both speak of bitterness. Paul simply says to get rid of all bitterness. (Ephesians 4:31) In Hebrews we read: “See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” (Hebrews 12:15)

Cowardice

Cowardice is the sin opposite of the virtue courage. Jesus denounced cowards saying they will go to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. That will be their second death. (Revelation 21:8)

Deceit

Deceit is another one of those sins that makes a man unclean. (Mark 7:21-23) Ananias and Sapphira kept part of the money they received for selling their property. They presented the rest of the proceeds from the sale and placed it “at the apostles feet.” Apparently, they claimed their donation was the entire amount received from the sale. Both died on the spot for their deception. (Acts 5:1-10)

Paul condemned Elymas, the sorcerer, for being “full of all kinds of deceit and trickery.” (Acts 13:10) Peter urges us: Rid yourselves of all deceit. (1 Peter 2:1) Also: “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.” (1 Peter 3:10)

And John says: Nothing impure will ever enter heaven, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful. (Revelation 21:27)

Envy

Jesus, Paul, James, and Peter all warn us against envy.

Jesus: Envy makes a man unclean. (Mark 7:21-23)

Paul: Envy is an act of the sinful nature. Those who envy do not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21) Again Paul: “Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:26)

James: Bitter envy and selfish ambition is earthly, unspiritual, and of the devil. (James 3:14-15) And Peter: Rid yourselves of all envy. (1 Peter 2:1)

Evil Thoughts

Jesus tells us that evil thoughts are another one of those things which make a man unclean. (Matthew 15:18-19) And he provides us with this clear insight: “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks…. the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him.” (Matthew 12:34-35)

Paul in a similar vein, says: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.” (Colossians 3:5-6)

Folly

Jesus rebuked folly. He tells us it is yet another of those sins of the spirit which make a man unclean. (Mark 7:21-23)

Greed

Then there is greed. Jesus condemned the teachers of the law for taking advantage of widows: “They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.” (Mark 12:40)

Likewise, he denounced the Pharisees for being full of greed and wickedness. (Luke 11:39) Then he warns us: “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

Paul says plainly: The greedy do not inherit the kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 6:10) Paul continues to caution us against greed. See Colossians 3:5, 1 Timothy 6:6-10, Ephesians 5:3 and 5:5.

And the writer of Hebrews puts it simply: “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have.” (Hebrews 13:5)

Hatred

Closely related to anger is hatred. Paul puts us on notice: Hatred is an act of the sinful nature. Those who hate will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

John compares hatred to darkness. “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.” (1 John 2:9) And he repeats his injunction: “Whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.” (1 John 2:11)

Hypocrisy

If we go by the number of times Jesus condemned a particular sin, he must have despised hypocrisy more than any other sin. Perhaps he saw more hypocrisy than anything else. We know it’s an easy enough trap to fall into. Hence we have numerous warnings.

Jesus tells us not to criticize others when our habits are worse than theirs. (Matthew 7:3-4) We are not to give to the needy, pray, or fast to impress other people. (Matthew 6:2, 6:5, 6:16) And Jesus repeatedly condemns the teachers of the law and the Pharisees for their hypocrisy. (Matthew 23:13, 15, 23, 25, 27, and 29)

Notice the colorful imaginary and biting humor Jesus employs in ridicule of the Jewish religious leaders. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” (Matthew 23:27-28)

And: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.” (Matthew 23:25)

Paul and Peter also denounced hypocrisy. See Romans 2:1, 2:21-23 and 1 Peter 2:1.

Jealousy

Paul criticized the Corinthian church because of their jealousy and quarreling. They were, he said, acting like “mere men.” (1 Corinthians 3:3) Jealousy is still another act of the sinful nature. Paul warns that those who act that way will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

Lust

Lust is another sin of the mind or spirit. We reviewed Jesus’ quote on the topic when we addressed the sin of adultery. “Anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:28)

Paul adds his own warning: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.” (Colossians 3:5-6) And he commands us to control our bodies and not to give in to lust like pagans who know nothing of God. (1 Thessalonians 4:4-5)

Malice

Malice is a desire to harm others. Jesus included it in his list of sins which make a man unclean. (Mark 7:21-23) Both Paul and Peter tell us to avoid this sin. (Ephesians 4:31) (Colossians 3:8) (1 Peter 2:1)

Pride

Pride is an overestimation of oneself. For many of us, this is the strongest temptation we face. Ironically, the more we have of it, the more we notice it in other people. The writer of Proverbs, Jesus, Paul, and James all warn us against yielding to this deadly sin.

“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” (Proverbs 16:18)

Jesus: “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matthew 23:12) (Luke 14:11)

Paul: “What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?” (1 Corinthians 4:7 NLT) The apostle encourages humility rather than pride: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3) Also Paul warns us against becoming conceited: “Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.” (Romans 12:16)

And James quoting Proverbs 3:34: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6)

Rage

Another iniquity of the mind is rage. Paul reminds us not to indulge in this error in three passages. In Galatians, he says that fits of rage are acts of the sinful nature. Those who act that way will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21) And twice Paul tells us to, “Get rid of rage.” (Ephesians 4:31) (Colossians 3:8)

Selfish Ambition

Ambition in our culture is a highly admired virtue. We associate it with hard work and contrast it with laziness and sloth. But we are put on notice that ambition must not degenerate into what biblical writers call “selfish ambition.”

That strikes many of us as a strange concept. Selfish ambition seems to be a natural, even a reasonable way of looking at life. After all, didn’t we earn the money. Why shouldn’t we spend our earnings as we please? God, however, demands a higher standard. He does not tolerate selfishness in any form. We are reminded to keep our perspective.

Jesus graphically illustrates God’s disgust with stingy people in the Parable of the Rich Fool. A rich man’s land yielded a good harvest. So good, he didn’t even have room to store all his grain. To solve his problem, he decided to tear down his barns and build larger ones to hold his grain. After that, he thought he could take life easy — eat, drink, and enjoy himself.

But God said: You fool, tonight you will die. Who will get all that you have hoarded for yourself? That is what happens to those who selfishly keep everything for themselves. The wise share their riches with God. (Luke 12:16-21)

Paul lists selfish ambition as another act of the sinful nature. Those who act that way, he says, will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21) In Philippians he writes: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Philippians 2:3)

And James adds his own warning: Bitter envy and selfish ambition are earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. (James 3:14-16)

Worry

Some people seem to be natural born worriers while others don’t seem to be bothered by anything. So what? The problem with worrying is that it betrays a lack of faith in God. Both Jesus and Paul caution us against worrying.

In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus tells us that the seed which fell among thorns stands for those who hear the gospel, but over time they are choked by life’s worries, riches, and pleasures, and do not mature. (Matthew 13:22) (Luke 8:14)

Jesus says in another passage: “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?” (Matthew 6:25) (Luke 12:22) Then he follows that with this penetrating question: “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ?” (Matthew 6:27) (Luke 12:25)

And Paul offers us this guidance: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

The biblical prohibitions on sins of the mind or spirit can be summed up in one simple bit of advice: Be careful what you think, for that is what you become.

Question to Consider:

Are the people you associate with, the books you read, and the entertainment you enjoy building up your character, or tearing it down?

“Question: Why are we Masters of our Fate, the captains of our souls? Because we have the power to control our thoughts, our attitudes. That is why many people live in the withering negative world. That is why many people live in the Positive Faith world. And you don’t have to be a poet or a philosopher to know which is best.” Alfred A. Montapert (1906 – ) American author

Note: All Scripture References are taken from the New International Version unless otherwise stated.

NLT – New Living Translation

Jerry Richard Boone
http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/sins-of-the-mind-or-spirit-133602.html

Lasko Kosher Cruises, which recently merged with Suite Life, a leading kosher cruise operator for the past seven years, has announced that it will be adding the first Glatt Kosher cruise to Israel and Egypt to its list of 2009 sailings. This “Ancient Empires” cruise will include 13 days aboard Celebrity Cruises’ brand new Equinox leaving from Rome, Italy on Tuesday, August 18, 2009.

The Ancient Empires itinerary features culturally rich ports of call including Rome and Naples, Italy; Athens and Rhodes, Greece; Ephesus, Turkey; Alexandria, Egypt; and Haifa and Ashdod, Israel. Guests will sail around the Mediterranean Sea visiting ruins, perusing architecture and sampling the flavor of these ancient empires.

The Israel/Egypt cruise, like all Lasko Kosher Cruises, offers premium accommodations plus three fresh, gourmet Glatt Kosher, Cholov Yisroel meals and snacks daily as well as three minyanim a day in a dedicated shul on board. All are complimentary and reserved for Lasko Kosher Cruises passengers exclusively.

Lasko brings onboard a full staff of mashgichim to kasher a designated portion of the galley in advance of the sailing and maintain 24-hour presence in the kitchen. A Lasko Kosher Cruise representative is also onboard every cruise to tend to guests’ personal needs.

“Our all-inclusive destinations at sea are distinguished by the quality of the ships we use, the standards of Kashrut we uphold, and the unique vacations we provide our guests,” said Sam Lasko, a partner in Lasko Kosher Cruises and founder of Lasko Family Kosher Tours, which has been serving the Jewish community for over 20 years, most notably in Kosher for Passover hotel programs. “We pride ourselves on the personal attention we provide, from the moment a customer calls to book until they disembark. Going that extra mile to create a warm family environment is part of our operating philosophy.”

“What is so nice about a kosher cruise is that you enjoy a true luxury vacation yet you don’t have to compromise any of your religious practices,” added Avrumi Flam, a partner in Lasko Kosher Cruises and a singer well known in the tri-state area Jewish Community. “We make you feel like you’re home, but you’re actually in the most fascinating destinations you would otherwise not be able to experience without the services of a kosher tour company like Lasko.”    

In fact, in addition to delicious gourmet dining, Lasko Kosher Cruises is known for its esteemed scholar in residence program, inspiring lectures from highly respected rabbis, and entertainment provided by popular jewish musicians. Among the other added-value features of a Lasko Kosher Cruise are extensive tea rooms between meals as well as personalized tours that visit Jewish related points of interest and explore the culture of the Jewish people. As an independent yet integrated group of each cruise, guests are always free to partake in all of the ship’s programs and exhilarating excursions.  

“When we launch Celebrity Equinox in Europe in 2009, some of her first voyages will include calls at Ashdod and Haifa,” said Dondra Ritzenthaler, senior vice president of sales, Celebrity Cruises. “We know that our guests will be as thrilled to discover these parts of Israel as they will be to discover all that the ship herself has to offer.”

In 2009, Lasko Kosher Cruises is also offering nine other first-class sailings: two seven-day cruises to the Eastern Caribbean, January 18th and January 25th; two seven-day cruises to Alaska, June 28th   and August 2nd; a seven-day cruise to the Baltic region and Russia, August 9th; two 10-day cruises to the Eastern Mediterranean and exotic Greek Isles, June 26th and August 7th; a seven-day cruise to the Norwegian Fjords, August 16th; and a combined Northern Europe/Norwegian Fjords cruise for 14 days leaving August 9th.

Lasko Kosher Cruises is now taking reservations for all of its 2009 cruises. Lasko Kosher Cruises, an affiliate of Lasko Family Kosher Tours, the largest kosher tour operator in the world, is based in South Florida. The company partners exclusively with top-tier cruise lines such as Celebrity Cruises and Costa Cruises, and embarks from different ports of call around the world. Lasko Kosher Cruises uses independent kosher supervision through Rabbi Levi Teitlebaum, director of the Ottowa Vaad HaKashrus (OVH), and Rabbi Yossi Birnbaum, the Israeli Field Representative of DSJ Global Kashrus Organization. For more detailed itinerary information or to reserve a cabin now, call 866.604.9838 or visit www.koshercruises.com.

Risa Chopp
http://www.articlesbase.com/cruising-articles/lasko-kosher-cruises-offers-first-glatt-kosher-cruise-to-israel-and-egypt-705856.html

Borat is a movie that has caused a great deal of controversy. The movie is funny, but the jokes make fun of women, Jewish people, and Gays. The controversy has two sides, those who view the movie as entertainment and those who are outraged because they feel this movie gives people of all ages the impression that there is nothing wrong with having fun at the expense of others. They also feel the movie stereotypes women and Jews in a manner that is disrespectful and not true.

One of the reasons Borat has caused such as stir is because the movie is portrayed as a documentary film. Many viewers believed that it was a realistic documentary, giving more fuel to the fire regarding the information contained in it. Another view of this film is that the producer, Sacha Baron Cohen, is brilliant. Maybe the purpose behind the film is to get people to take notice of how ignorant such behaviors truly are in our society. While many feel the jokes in the movie are border line offensive, they do make people stop and take notice. Maybe it will reflect back to their own statements as well as those made by others they converse with.

Whether you make the choice to see the film Borat or not, it is likely you will hear people talking about it. Some will find it fun entertainment while others will take it as offensive material that should not be available to the public. The producer is remaining quiet about the reasons behind such a film, leaving audiences and critics to draw their own conclusions. Cohen is no stranger to developing and marketing films that the general public finds controversial. While some individuals will go see this movie because of the trailers, it is likely many viewers will see it just to find out what all the hype is about.

Gabriel Adams
http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/borat-both-sides-of-the-debate-81183.html