Brothers and Sisters In Arms – The Aleph Institute Hosts Shabbaton with Jewish Troops

Miami, FL [CHI] — 50 Jewish soldiers, Chaplains and family members, from diverse ranks of the military, flew overseas and from all parts of the US for The Aleph Institute’s Military Shabbaton and training conference at The Shul of Bal Harbour last weekend.

The regal presence and professional stature of the military group brought Shul members to attention as Kabbalat Shabbat began. Alone mostly at their bases, the troops clearly enjoyed the opportunity to pray with their families in such a large and welcoming community.

Friday night dinner was hosted in a magnificently decorated outdoor tent which set the tone for close personal interaction between the guests and service personnel over a gourmet Shabbat meal. Compelling speeches from military leaders and chaplains captivated guests throughout the evening. “It really impacted me how devoted these Jewish service men and women are, both to their faith and to their country,” said dinner guest Mrs. Pnina Wuensch. “They stay true to themselves and our people and express their gratitude for the freedom we know and cherish in the United States by putting themselves in harm’s way to protect our country.”

In his keynote address, Rabbi Chaplain Major Shmuel Felzenberg, joined by his wife and six children, spoke about the self-sacrifice that service personnel and their families make. “When I left for Afghanistan, my youngest daughter was three,” Felzenberg said, “when I came home three weeks ago, she was five.” He described the feeling of victory over evil during his deployment in Iraq when he read the Megillah inside Saddam Hussein’s presidential palace, and his description of the extreme poverty in Afghanistan caused a ripple of incredulity amongst the guests.

For The Shul community, it was an eye-opener in many respects. “I never knew that army chaplains actually go out with the battalions on a mission,” said Mrs. Vivian Perez, “I thought they stayed in a safe place at the base. It was a real revelation to learn that they also form part of the military on the front lines.”

Shabbat morning, The Shul community heard from six speakers from different levels of the military at each aliyah of the Torah reading: Chaplain Kevin S. Bemel, Okinawa, Japan; Rabbi Chaplain Menashe Miller, Fort Dix, NJ; Chaplain Mordechai Schwab, Camp Le Jeune, NC; Chaplain Henri Soussan, Leeds, England; Rabbi Chaplain Chesky Tennenbaum, who is the first Chassidic Rabbi to join the State Defense Force in Maryland; and for the first time in history, two Jewish US generals, Major General Sidney Shachnow and Major General Ronald Silverman, stood before the Torah scroll together in one place at one time.

“The information and inspiration that the Chaplains brought out in their divrei Torah highlighted how important their work is around the world,” said Rebetzin Chana Tibor. Their knowledge and dedication must be a tremendous encouragement and support to the Jewish soldiers at their units.”

Major General Shachnow, whose entire family perished in the holocaust, reflected on his life as a child survivor of the notorious Kovono concentration camp, his immigration to the US in 1950, and enlisting in the Armed Forces to go forward and lead 32 decorated years in the Special Forces. He spoke of the irony at being liberated by the Russian army after the holocaust, to later become Commander of the Berlin Brigade to protect West Germany from the Russians, as well as the guilt that passive bystanders must bear for their silence during WWI and WWII, until today. “This forum that The Aleph Institute is providing is extremely important,” he said, “you are giving the Jewish military community a strong voice.”

During a lavish Shabbat lunch-time meal, Rabbi Chaplain Colonel Jacob Goldstein, who joined the Armed Forces thirty years ago, spoke about the importance of The Aleph Institute’s work. “When we send an email asking for matzah, we know that you take us seriously,” he said. “Soldiers might be going to the front lines and need to take it with them. We don’t know who will return safely, and who won’t.”

Sergeant Moshe Lans explained how military procedures can make it difficult for Jewish soldiers to get the items they need for Shabbat and the Jewish holidays. “There’s a lot of paperwork, a lot of red tape,” he said. “The Aleph Institute changed all that. One email with a request for grape juice or even Tefillin, and we know the package is on its way the very same day. We can rely on it every time, and there are no words to describe what that means to us.”

Overall, it was evident that the camaraderie enjoyed amongst the soldiers themselves and within The Shul community would be long-lasting. Chaplain Kevin S. Bemel, who flew from Okinawa, Japan, to participate at the Shabbaton, highlighted how grateful he and all the guests were to reconnect with some of their friends from the military that they had not seen in a long time, and to make new acquaintances. In addition, he said, “I feel better equipped to provide for the Jewish service men and women at my unit in Japan.”

Saturday night, more than 700 people attended the 6th annual Aleph auction to win outstanding prizes. Service members were invited to attend and spend time with community members who did not attend the Shabbaton. One member of The Shul who asked to remain anonymous, purchased $2250 worth of auction tickets and went to every single service member to thank them for their time, their service to our country, and for attending the Shabbaton; as a token of his personal appreciation, he gave each of them a gift of $150 worth of tickets to enjoy for the evening.

Sunday, after morning prayers, service personnel gathered for The Aleph Institute’s first military chaplaincy training conference, which opened with a session from Rabbi Sholom D. Lipskar, The Aleph Institute’s Founder & Chairman, on the moral ethics perspective on terrorism from a Jewish legal point of view, and how Jewish soldiers depict themselves in an act of terrorism, or on the battlefront in a war zone.

Chaplain Henri Soussan summed up how he felt about the Shabbaton with a reference to the week’s Torah portion and the description of the ark in the mishkan that was plated with gold, inside and out. He said that as a Chaplain and a Jew in an isolated environment, he gains the strength to go forward and lead his fellow soldiers on the right path from the support and warmth that The Aleph Institute shows to Jews in the military. “I will take the gold that this community portrayed from the inside back with me,” he said, “and bring it outside in England with my troops.”