The United States Senate passed a measure to put an end to United States support of Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen. Only 50 Jews remain in Yemen, following a more than 2000 year history. Almost the entire Jewish community fled the country in 1949 and 1950, immigrating to Israel in what was known as Operation Magic Carpet. Which of the following is true regarding almost 50,000 Yemenite Jews who went to Israel at that time?

Costumes, characters, etc. Group of Yemenite Jews from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division.

A. The fleeing Yemenite Jews flew to Israel on Alaska Airlines. The 48 seats on the planes were removed so that more than 100 people could fit on a flight. This still required more than 430 flights over the course of 16 months to bring all the Yemenite Jews to Israel.

B. Because none of the fleeing Yemenite Jews had ever flown, or even seen a plane, there was great fear among the assembled regarding the boarding of this huge, strange vehicle for the first flight out of Yemen. While community leaders and Israeli officials were discussing how to best convince the reluctant people to begin boarding, a young boy began climbing the ladder. The community took this as a sign from God, as the boy’s name was Nahshon Dahari, which was reminiscent of Nahshon, the leader of the tribe of Judah who was the first Israelite to set foot into the water at the Exodus crossing of the Red Sea.

C. Of the more than 400 flights from Yemen to Israel, the very first flight had the fewest number of people on it, as the community insisted that their Torah scrolls be evacuated even before the people. 373 Torah scrolls were on that initial flight, the oldest of which dated to the 12th century. 

D. At first, the Yemenite Jews refused to board the airplane, something they had never seen before, based on their interpretation of the Torah. The Book of Genesis, chapter 1 verses 7-8 reads: “And God made the expanse and it separated between the water that was below the expanse and the water that was above the expanse, and it was so. And God called the expanse Heaven, and it was evening, and it was morning, a second day.” They interpreted this to mean that the sky is the heavenly realm of God and therefore they were not willing to get onto a plane that would bring them up into that realm. Ultimately, however, the Chief Rabbi of Yemen convinced them that the superseding law was that which stated that anything could be done to save a life.

E. In an effort to avoid missile fire from hostile Arab nations attempting to stop the operation, pilots of the airplanes bringing the Jews to Israel developed a maneuver wherein they would jog the plane slightly to the left, back to the right and then ultimately make a left turn, or alternately jog the plane slightly to the right, back to the left, and then make a right turn. This diversionary tactic, which allowed hundreds of flights to safely reach Israel, was adapted by the Yemenite Jews into dance moves which have become known as Yemenite left and Yemenite right in traditional Israeli dancing.

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President George H. W. Bush passed away last week at the age of 94. Bush was generally considered a friend to American Jews and Israel. But at least once in his life, he said something that prompted blow back from members of the Jewish community. What did he say?

A. Before Bush entered politics, he was an entrepreneur in the oil business in Texas, and in 1954 he became president of the Zapata Offshore Company in Midland, Texas. When Egypt blocked the Suez Canal in 1956, leading to the Second Arab-Israeli War, Bush spoke out against the Israelis, claiming that they and their French and British coalition partners were causing a major disruption in international oil markets, hurting Bush’s company as well. Members of the Jewish community in Houston reached out to Texas governor Allan Shivers, who contacted his friend George Bush and alerted him to the distress he had caused within the Jewish community. Bush apologized, and often referenced that incident as one which enlightened him to the issues facing Israel, something he did not have much knowledge about previously.

B. In 1991, Bush opposed a plan to provide $10 million in loan guarantees to Israel in support of the resettlement of the large number of Soviet Jews who were arriving in Israel. There was a strong effort in the Jewish community to get Bush to go along with the plan, prompting him to say that he was just “one lonely guy” up against “a thousand lobbyists on the Hill.” Bush later apologized for the remark, which was seen as suggesting that Jews had too much power in Washington, DC.

C. When President Bush was putting together a coalition to fight against Iraq following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait, there was great discussion as to what role Israel might play. Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir was anxious to see Saddam Hussein defeated, as he feared that otherwise, Iraq would be emboldened to attack Israel. Hussein had spoken of wanting revenge against Israel since the 1981 bombing by Israel of the Iraqi nuclear facility. But Bush was concerned that an Israeli presence in the coalition would restrict America’s ability to align with other Arab countries against Iraq. At one point, in frustration, Bush said during a White House strategy session that “we have to find to way to keep that Jewish fellow quiet.” When word got out of Bush’s reference to Shamir, he received great criticism from within the Jewish community, leading him to apologize to Shamir for his indiscretion.

D. Following the Gulf War in 1991, the Bush administration began to focus on the Arab-Israeli conflict, feeling that the time was ripe for a resolution, following the defeat of Saddam Hussein and the freeing of Kuwait by the American-led coalition. Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir was reluctant to enter negotiations, and at one point Bush said, “We will always stand by our Israeli friends. But that does not mean that we will stand by blindly. I call on Prime Minister Shamir to join in our efforts, so that we can continue to stand side by side.” There was a huge outcry from the American Jewish community and Congress who felt that this was unduly harsh and threatening to the Israelis, leading Bush to publicly apologize to Shamir. Ultimately, they did move forward together with the Madrid Conference, a forerunner of the Oslo Accords of 1993.

E. In President Bush’s acceptance speech at the Repubican National Convention in 1988, he referred to “a thousand points of light,” a phrase he continued to use in reference to the many volunteers and organizations who worked to improve the lives of Americans. The following year, Rabbi Levi Shemtov of Chabad in Washington lit the national menorah at Chanukkah time, and in his remarks he drew parallels between Bush’s thousand points of light and the lights of the chanukkiah. He then noted that he would be delivering potato latkes to the Bush White House for Bush’s family and White House staff to enjoy. The word spread of this effort, and all of a sudden Chabad Houses around the country were sending potato pancakes to the White House. Finally, President Bush had to call on Jews across the country to cease with this effort, as he famously said, “Read my lips. NO NEW LATKES.”

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President Trump is hosting the official White House Chanukkah party on Thursday, a tradition started by President George W. Bush and continued by President Barack Obama. The first president to actually light a menorah in the White House was Bill Clinton. Though he did not host an official party, Clinton did invite a dozen schoolchildren to the White House in 1993 for a small candle lighting ceremony. What did a 6-year-old girl named Ilana do at that event?

A. She sang the Chanukkah blessings.

B. She wandered off into the White House, eventually coming upon Chelsea Clinton in her bedroom. Chelsea and the girl played games and Chelsea read her a book until the Secret Service came in looking for the lost girl.

C. She taught President Clinton how to play the dreidel game.

D. She got too close to the candles, causing her ponytail to catch fire. President Clinton snuffed out the fire with his hands.

E. She got too close to President Clinton and he caught fire. The Secret Service snuffed out Ilana with their hands.

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Lines formed overnight and crowds surged into shopping malls and big box stores as the Christmas shopping season began on the day after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday. Meanwhile, in Israel, ads appeared all over television last Thursday night touting sales taking place in stores on Friday. What name was used to describe that shopping day in Israel?

IMGP2667 by djLicious is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. Black Friday. 

B. Friday.

C. Chanukkat Lavan.

D. Yom Shishi Shachor.

E. Blek Fchidey.

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Marvel Comics writer Stan Lee died last week at the age of 95. Lee created hundreds of characters including Spider-Man, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, and Ant-Man. Lee intentionally did not identify any of his characters as Jewish, though he noted how Judaism influenced his writing, stating “To me you can wrap all of Judaism up in one sentence, and that is, ‘Do not do unto others…’ All I tried to do in my stories was show that there’s some innate goodness in the human condition.” Lee noted his approval when subsequent writers ascribed the Jewish religion to some of his characters. What Jewish activity did a Stan Lee-created character participate in?

Stan Lee by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

A. The Thing, whose real name was Ben Grimm, came upon an unconscious, and seemingly dying, Mr. Sheckerberg, the pawnshop owner he knew. The Thing proceeded to recite the Sh’ma on his behalf, in keeping with Jewish practice.

B. Sue Storm, known as the Invisible Woman, was a member of the Fantastic Four. In one story line, she invited the other members of the group to her house, ostensibly to discuss a plan to capture their enemy, The Mole Man. But when they arrived at her house, they found her table set for a Passover seder, and the Fantastic Four celebrated Passover together.

C. While Spider-Man is not a Jewish character, in a 1997 edition of the comic, Spider-Man (real name Peter Parker) got married to his longtime girlfriend, Mary Jane Watson. It was revealed the she was Jewish (her original family name was Weitzmann), and the wedding took place under a chuppah.

D. Captain Marvel, one of the original members of the Avengers (along with Thor and the Ant-Man), was created by Stan Lee and introduced in 1967. In a 1982 graphic novel, The Death of Captain Marvel, it was revealed that Captain Marvel was Jewish, and he was buried in a Jewish cemetery.

E. The Human Torch, one of the founding members of the Fantastic Four, eventually found himself on the outs with the rest of the group, and was replaced by Ant-Man. For a while, the Human Torch turned to alcohol and became homeless. However, at one point he came into contact with the Chabad rabbi in Washington DC, who reminded him of his Jewish roots (the Human Torch’s real name was Nathan Fierstein), and led him on a path to redemption, which included the hiring of the Human Torch to light the candles at the National Menorah lighting across from the White House.

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Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was in the news last week, as she suffered three broken ribs from a fall in her office. What is unique about the chambers of Justice Ginsburg in the Supreme Court building?

Ruth Bader Ginsburg official portrait

A. Justice Ginsburg’s chambers is the only room in the Supreme Court building where a seder has been held. In 2007, the court was scheduled to meet on the day of the first seder. Knowing that the session would run relatively late in the day, Justice Ginsburg offered to host a “mini seder” in her chambers, which was attended by the Jewish court clerks, Justice Ginsburg, and the other Jewish justice serving at that time, Stephen Breyer.

B. While some other justices have a copy of the Ten Commandments on their wall, only Justice Ginsburg has a copy of the Ten Commandments with the wording and numbering according to Jewish tradition.

C. The chambers of Justice Ginsburg is the only room in the Supreme Court where a minyan has met. In 2015, one of the lawyers arguing before the court was in a bind, because he was saying shiva for his father, and the court session was running late. The attorney approached the judges and asked if it might be possible to take a fifteen minute break, and his request was granted. Between the lawyers and the court employees present, there were enough Jews for a minyan, and Justice Ginsburg offered her chambers as a site for the service.

D. Justice Ginsburg’s chambers is the only room in the Supreme Court building with a mezuzah.

E. Justice Ginsburg’s chambers is the only room in the Supreme Court building with a doctor on 24 hour standby, paid for by the Democratic National Committee.

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Actor Alec Baldwin was in the news last week, as he was arrested for allegedly assaulting a man during a parking dispute. Baldwin has been in the middle of many controversies in the past, including what Israel-related event?

Alec Baldwin by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

A. The Dominican newspaper El Nacional ran an article about Donald Trump and Israel, following Trump’s comments last year that the Israeli West Bank settlements “don’t help the [peace] process.” The article was accompanied by a picture of Israel Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu and, inadvertently, a photo of Alex Baldwin, made up as Donald Trump for a Saturday Night Live sketch.

B. In 2017, Alec Baldwin performed on Broadway in a production of the play Orphans. The Shubert Organization, which produced the show, planned a one night production of the show in Tel Aviv as a fundraiser to support Israel’s Habima Theatre. The original cast were all scheduled to perform; however, Baldwin backed out in support of the BDS movement, after he was contacted and pressured by his friend Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, a BDS activist.

C. Baldwin visited Israel in 2013 and made an appearance at the Western Wall. He happened to come upon a bar mitzvah celebration, and when the celebrants began dancing a hora around the bar mitzvah boy, a rabbi grabbed Baldwin’s hand and tried to bring him into the circle. Baldwin shoved the rabbi, and police moved in. Baldwin says that he did not realize what was happening and felt threatened when he was grabbed. No charges were filed, and the actor apologized and made a donation to The Western Wall Heritage Foundation, the body responsible for overseeing the area of the Western Wall.

D. Baldwin has had frequent run-ins with photographers, including during a trip to Israel that he took with his wife Hilaria in 2014. When a photographer got too close to Hilaria in the Machane Yehuda market in Jerusalem, Baldwin punched him, and more dramatically given the location, called the photographer a "f-ing terrorist.”

E. In the spring of 2016, Alec Baldwin appeared on the Israeli television satire program, Eretz Nehederet, which is often referred to as the Israeli Saturday Night Live. The sketch depicted an actor as Netanyahu, making a phone call to Donald Trump (played by Baldwin), asking Trump for advice on how to handle the media that was regularly attacking him. Baldwin, as Trump, never managed to answer the question, spending the entire time trying to get the Prime Minister’s name right, saying “Shalom, Bubbie, um, Bobby? Bo Bo? Baba Ganoush? Wait, what is it? Bim Bam? Boobies?  Well, whatever. Thanks for calling. Bye bye. Oh, is that it? Bye Bye?” It was as a result of this sketch that Baldwin was later hired by SNL to replace Darrell Hammond as their Trump impersonator.

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Ariana Grande is in the news following the announcement of her breakup with Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson. Grande was raised Catholic, but turned away from the religion because of the theology regarding homosexuality, in solidarity with her gay brother, Frankie. She now studies kabbalah and has been reported to call herself Jewish. What is another Jewish connection in Ariana Grande’s life?

Ariana Grande by Emma is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

A. Movie and television executive Steve Tisch, also an owner of the New York Giants, first came to know Ariana Grande when she was on the Nickolodeon show Victorious, where she played the part of Cat Valentine. Tisch was a producer on that show, and later asked Grande to sing the National Anthem for the Giants opening game of the 2016 season. In 2017, Tisch hired Grande to perform as the entertainment at the bar mitzvah of his grandson, Jason, which took place at MetLife Stadium, home field of the Giants.

B. Grande grew up in Florida, where she attended the bar and bat mitzvahs of many of her friends, even singing in Hebrew on the bima at her best friend’s bat mitzvah.

C. One of Grande’s first performing roles was as a cast member of the Broadway show 13, a show about a Jewish boy, Evan, who moves from New York to a small town in Indiana, shortly before his bar mitzvah. Evan struggles to make new friends (including Charlotte, the cheerleader played by Grande) who will come to his bar mitzvah party.

D. Grande was invited to perform in Tel Aviv at a concert in Hayarkon Park in 2016. She wasn’t sure if she should accept this engagement, as she received pressure from people involved in the BDS movement, who threatened a boycott if she sang in Israel. However, Grande had recently begun dating rapper Mac Miller, who was Jewish, and he convinced her to make the trip. The concert was attended by more than 45,000 people.

E. Grande’s best friend growing up was the granddaughter of Howard Schultz, former CEO of Starbucks. Schultz met Grande at his granddaughter’s bat mitzvah party, where Ariana sang a song for her best friend. Schultz went on to name the 16 ounce size of coffee at Starbucks after Ariana.

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Lotto fever has hit the country, as the Mega Millions first prize in this week’s drawing will be at least $1.6 billion, an all-time high amount. Israel offers its own lottery, known as Mifal HaPayis, with a variety of games including a bi-weekly 7-number drawing, as well as a keno-type game, a daily 3-digit game, and scratch-offs. Which of the following is a true story about the Israeli Mifal HaPayis lottery?

Lotto by Paul Sableman is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

A. The name “Mifal HaPayis” means “The Side Curl Enterprise,” referencing the side curls, or payis, of Chassidic men. The name was chosen when the lottery was first established in Israel in 1951 to provide funding for young Chassidic men who were studying at yeshivas, and who in most cases did not have income-producing jobs. (Today Mifal Hapayis supports schools, hospitals, parks, performing arts, and many other community resources).

B. Waze, the navigation app, is one of the most successful GPS applications in the world. The software was originally developed in 2006 by Israeli programmer Ehud Shabtai, as a school project at the Israeli Technion University, where he was studying. While he hoped to find funding to enable him to turn his project into a marketable application, he had been unsuccessful until he happened to win NIS 20,000 (equivalent to $5200) in a Mifal Hapayis drawing, a contest he had been entering weekly for years. He was able to utilize those winnings to set up a small company, finalize the app design, and begin offering Waze in the iTunes store. In 2013 Waze was purchased by Google for $966 million.

C. Mifal Hapayis was successfully sued by the estate of Charlie Chaplin for illegally using a “Little Tramp”-like character with bowler hat and cane in its ad campaign, plastered over billboards, buses, and elsewhere. According to Josephine Chaplin, the comedian’s daughter, “They [lottery officials] said everybody dressed that way back then, with a bowler hat and a cane.”

D. One of the games sponsored by Mifal Hapayis is the 123 Daily Draw game, in which players must correctly choose three numbers between 0 and 9, in the correct order in which they were drawn. On September 14, 2009, this game set a record for the largest number of winning tickets ever sold for a single game, as more than 629,000 people selected the winning numbers of 6, 1, and 3, causing a huge financial loss that week for the lottery. Apparently, because the numbers 6, 1, and 3 correspond to the number of commandments in the Torah, tickets with these numbers are sold in staggeringly huge quantities compared to any other number combination. 

E. As in the United States, winners of huge Mifal Hapayis payouts appear on Israeli television for a press conference. However, unlike in the United States where most states require the winners to come forward publicly, Mifal Hapayis wants to protect the privacy of its prize winners, while still presenting a press conference as part of their marketing approach. Therefore Mifal Hapayis officials provide large welder-type masks to the winners, who appear live on TV wearing this strange head gear.

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Tensions are rising in the Middle East, as Turkey has accused Saudi Arabia of murdering a Turkish reporter inside the Saudi embassy in Istanbul. There is a long Jewish history in Turkey, going back to at least the 5th century BCE. And according to some theories, Noah’s ark came to rest on Mt. Ararat in Turkey. Dr. Eran Elhaik, of the University of Sheffield in England, claims that a significant percentage of world Jewry has roots that can be traced to an area of northwest Turkey. His research is based on genetic and historical evidence, but in addition, Dr. Elhaik notes that there are three villages near each other in this part of Turkey that are indicative of the Jewish roots of the area. What are the names of the three towns?

Map of Turkey by sk is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.

A. Sephardaz, Turkey; Tzafartaz, Turkey; and Sephardekez, Turkey.

B. Iskenaz, Turkey; Eskenaz, Turkey; and Ashanaz, Turkey.

C. Abrahamaz, Turkey; Isakaz Turkey; and Jacobez, Turkey.

D. Davidaz, Turkey; Shlomaz, Turkey; and Shaulez, Turkey.

E. Wild, Turkey; Cold, Turkey, and Empire, Turkey.

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