PRESS RELEASES
Rabbi Starts Jewish Outreach Organization
The Palm Beach Post - January 5, 1989
An Orthodox rabbi whose activist style has sometimes made him the center of controversy is starting a Jewish outreach organization with classes and other programs designed to draw more people into Jewish life. Rabbi Mordechai Gafni will kick off the new enterprise, called the Center for Jewish Living, with a lecture at 7:30 tonight at Spanish River High School, 5100 Jog Road, in Boca Raton.
Rabbi Urges “Revolution” In Values Gafni’s Controversial Speech Part of Classes
The Palm Beach Post - January 6, 1989
Nothing less than a “revolution” will stir south county Jewry out of complacency and into a life devoted to Judaism, Rabbi Mordechai Gafni said Thursday night. Speaking to about 250 people at Spanish River High School, Gafni said: “To my mind, there is no greater tragedy than South Florida. . . . We’d like to start a revolution of Torah values.” Gafni, who left the pulpit of the Orthodox Boca Raton Synagogue last year amid differences with…
Boca Rabbi Accepts Job On West Bank
The Palm Beach Post - July 22, 1989
An Orthodox rabbi whose activist style won both friends and enemies among local Jews has accepted a religious post in the Middle East. Rabbi Mordechai Gafni, 28, said he will leave in September or October for a two-year post as rabbi of Zufim, a Jewish settlement on the West Bank. The new community is on the western edge of the occupied territory, about 2 miles east of the Israeli city of Kefar Sava. Gafni said the community has only 10 families now, but has plans for about…
The New Orthodoxy: The New Rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue Expects to Make Waves
Sun-Sentinel - July 24, 1987
By Carol Brzozowski, Staff Writer
The name Mordechai Gafni may not ring a bell in Palm Beach County yet.
But as the Orthodox rabbi settles into his new position as the first full-time rabbi for the Boca Raton Synagogue, he has hopes of being a ”clanging cymbal” for God.Gafni, 26, just may do that. If he were a Christian, his style would be called evangelical.
Gafni immediately is forthright about his lifestyle, should there be any questions on the topic: ”I’ll be making about $40,000 to $44,000, I drive a 1984 Topaz and I own eight suits.”
Gafni has come from New York to the fledgling Boca Raton Synagogue, the only Orthodox synagogue in Boca Raton, and one of three in Palm Beach county.
Its construction is the bloodline for the Orthodox body. Orthodox Jews walk to the synagogue on the Sabbath and its construction has made it easier for the Jews to worship.
”People were moving here because they knew we were here,” said Dr. Gary Lieber, a spokesman and founding member of the synagogue.
Just a few weeks into his position, Gafni is making plans in an effort to get involved. He is constantly on the telephone, talking with religious and secular community leaders. On the drawing board is a plan for some type of ”demonstration” in regards to the papal visit.
”Judaism has got to be a moral and social force,” Gafni said. ”Not just to make pronouncements, but to become involved.”
”We were looking for someone to shake the bushes, to make the synagogue a dynamic place,” Lieber said of the search for a rabbi. ”We’re looking to make the congregation the Jewish center in south county. With a mouthpiece like him, we want to let people know we’re here. We’ve essentially done the groundwork.”
Gafni ambitiously speaks of a few of his plans, one of which is to create a national Jewish retreat center on the synagogue’s property.
”Why not?” he said. ”The assumption is that everything operates out of New York. (Studies show) there are 75,000 Jews in Palm Beach County.”
Yet South County Jewish Federation studies also show that the affiliation rate of local Jews is 13 percent, half the national average.
”Boca in general is extremely materialistic and completely self-involved,” Gafni said in interpreting the statistics.
”Younger people come to Florida to escape and be unaffiliated.”
Gafni said he doesn’t condemn the acquisition of material goods and adds that Hebrew scriptures show that God created the world and the world is to be enjoyed.
As a spiritual leader, Gafni said he will attempt to guide his congregation into emphasizing aspects of life that transcend material goods.
”So you’ve got the Porsche, the pool and the boat. What happens when you die? What do you have then? What did life mean? There must be a purpose to life. Living a meaningful existence is more pleasurable than owning a Porsche.”
Thus, the synagogue becomes what he calls the ”pleasure center.”
Gafni did not say how much membership in the synagogue will cost, but said, ”Any Jew can come to High Holy Days even if they can’t pay. And no Jew ever will be turned away for lack of funds — ever, ever.”
Although the Boca Raton synagogue structure is complete, Gafni said there is still more work to do on the inside and the work that is being planned will introduce some new twists on established ideas.
For instance, men and women are seated separately in Orthodox synagogues and typically women are out of the sight of the men, either behind a screen or in the back of the synagogue.
Plans for Boca Raton Synagogue (the word ”Orthodox” is intentionally omitted) still separate men and women, but women are not out of sight. Structurally, the synagogue is in a semicircle, focusing on the center of worship: the Torah and the Eternal Light.
”There will be an opportunity within the synagogue context for women to express themselves in a public manner, which is completely within the (Hebrew) law,” Gafni said. ”Men or women will be able to get up and give a talk about a religious issue.
”We will have orthodoxy with a small ‘o’ and Halakhah (Jewish law) with a capital ‘H.’ ”
He calls it the new Orthodoxy. Orthodox Judaism usually evokes the stereotypical image of long beards, curly sideburns and black coats — and a separation from the rest of society.
The ”new” Orthodox Jew is the upwardly mobile doctor, lawyer, stockbroker or other person integrally involved in society, yet set apart from others in similiar professions by a belief system that emphasizes religious law and spiritual values.
A prime example of that was Gafni’s ”outreach” lectures on Wall Street. He once did a lecture on Wall Street called ”Jewish Sexual Ethics.” He also conducted lunchtime scripture studies in a prestigious Manhattan law firm.
Orthodox Judaism is attractive to young Jews, Gafni said, because ”young people are looking for something that’s real. People intuitively sense that which is authentic and I think there’s a desperate yearning for authenticity.” Gafni is an example of the attractiveness of Orthodoxy to young Jews. He had become so immersed in it that by 23 he was teaching Bible at Yeshiva University.
”There’s nothing as exciting as traditional Judaism,” Gafni said. He wants to turn what he feels is a stereotype of Orthodox Judaism from ”backward, anti-feminist, anti-science” to ”real exciting, progressive system of life.”
In New York, Gafni recruited young people by walking into public schools with a shofar (the administration did not know of his actions). Children who recognized the shofar — a ram’s horn used for ceremonies — were targeted as recruits for his Jewish Public School Youth Project. He turned his efforts into a string of clubs with a budget of $500,000.
If Gafni initiates the project in Florida, he won’t be staging any press conferences.
”It would be difficult to do it in Florida schools,” he said. ”If I do it, I won’t announce it.”
Gafni is critical of some other Jewish and non-Jewish religious groups (For instance, he asks, ”What’s Jewish about Reform Judaism?”) although he adds that he believes he will have a good working relationship with other clergy.
”I believe we have the most correct system,” he said of Orthodox Judaism. ”I believe there are moments of truth in others.”
What are the dietary restrictions that some Jews follow to “keep kosher” (the laws of kashrut)?
http://joi.org/qa/kosher.shtml
One can find the source of the laws of Kashrut in Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. There are four main laws, written within these books, upon which all laws are based. These rules are: “You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s milk” (Exodus 23.19); “You shall set apart the ritually clean beast from the unclean” (Leviticus 20.25); “You must not eat flesh torn by beasts” (Exodus 22.30); and “You shall not eat anything that dies a natural death” (Deuteronomy 14.21).
How strictly one observes kashrut varies not only within the denominations but, like the observance of Shabbat, from family to family.
There are a number of foods that have already been predetermined by the Torah and interpreted by the rabbis as either kosher or non-kosher.
Prohibited Fowl: Bat, cuckoo, eagle, hawk, heron, kite, lapwing, ostrich, owl, pelican, stork, swan, and vulture.
Permitted Fowl: Capon, chicken, dove, duck, geese, pigeon, and turkey.
Prohibited Fish and Seafood: Catfish, eel, porpoise, shark, whale, clam, crab, frog, lobster, octopus, oyster, scallop, shrimp, and snail.
Permitted Fish and Seafood: Anchovy, bluefish, butterfish, carp, cod, flounder, fluke, haddock, halibut, herring, mackerel, pike, porgy, red snapper, salmon, sardine, seabass, shad, smelt, sole, trout tuna, weakfish, and whitefish.
Meat restrictions: All animals that chew their cud and have a split hoof are kosher. This includes cattle, sheep, goats, and deer, and excludes horses, donkeys, camels, and pigs.
Meat must be killed according to the laws of shechitah, laws written that govern how an animal that is to be eaten must be killed.
Once a beast has been slaughtered, it must be salted properly in order to remove excess blood.
Egg restrictions: Eggs from non-kosher birds are not kosher. Eggs with bloodspots are not kosher.
There are no holidays in which the laws of kashrut are not in effect. There are a few, however, when there are extra restrictions on what you can and cannot eat. The holiday that has the most restrictions on what we can and cannot eat is Passover.
The Rabbi Rocks
by Tracey Wong Briggs
USA Today - August 17, 1987
Rabbi Mordechai Gafni of Boca Raton, Fla., has produced Jewish Pride, a rock album appealing to Jewish youth. The LP, set for USA-wide release Sept. 1, includes songs written by Lenny Solomon and performed by young Jewish musicians. Rappin’ Jewish, by Danny Furst, says: “La-die-doo, I’m a Jew ’cause I think it’s cool/ Yeah, I eat kosher meat ’cause I ain’t no fool/ Ask me anything you want to, but I will repeat/ I say being Jewish makes me groove to the beat.’
Rabbi rolls out Jewish rock album
Associated Press/St. Petersburg Times - August 17, 1987
BOCA RATON - A 26-year-old rabbi is using rock ‘n’ roll to appeal to Jewish youth in a way they can understand.
Mordechai Gafni, spiritual leader of the Boca Raton Community Synagogue, has produced what he calls the first Jewish rock ‘n’ roll album, set for national release Sept. 1.
I’m looking to create a revolution in Jewish life, he said. Music speaks to people. I want this to become a major outreach tool to bring young people back to Judaism.
The album, titled Jewish Pride, includes a danceable theme song of the same name, a ballad called Minyan Man and a rap song Rappin’ Jewish written by Danny Furst.
A sample of the lyrics:
La-die-doo, I’m a Jew ’cause I think it’s cool
Yeah, I eat kosher meat ’cause I ain’t no fool
Ask me anything you want to, but I will repeat
I say being Jewish makes me groove to the beat.
Letter by Rabbi Causes Flap in House Race
The Associated Press Political Service - November 2, 1990
BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) _ An endorsement letter sent to 50,000 Jewish voters was written by a controversial rabbi using a different name, the Republican congressional candidate has acknowledged.
Scott Shore faced a jeering political crowd Thursday when he confirmed the letter was written by former Boca Raton Rabbi Mordechai Gafni. He was once censured by the local rabbinical association for inappropriate behavior, but the censure was later withdrawn.
The letter was signed by Rabbi Marc Gafni, a name Gafni said he adopted when he moved to Israel two years ago.
It also was addressed to “my fellow Democrats” even though Gafni’s last registration was as a Republican.
Shore refused demands from the audience at Temple Beth El that he apologize for the letter.
The audience of more than 250, including many supporters of the incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Harry Johnston, hooted when Shore claimed he wasn’t trying to deceive voters about Gafni’s true identity.
Johnston, who attended the forum to debate Shore, also noted Gafni said in the letter that he had been a supporter of John F. Kennedy. Gafni was 3 years old when Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, Johnston said.
Gafni, who was Shore’s rabbi while in Boca Raton, was active in protests such as one against Pope John Paul II’s visit to Miami in 1987, where he dressed in concentration camp clothing.
PBS Special - Soul Prints - Your Path to Fulfillment (DVD)
Starring Marc Gafni Fox Lorber (Publisher) - April 10, 2001
http://dvd.idealo.com/prices/P20008840135K2.html
Soul Prints - Your Path to Fulfillment - MARC GAFNI 790658993808 Rabbi Marc Gafni compares a person’s individual spirit to the uniqueness of their fingerprint, dubbing the former a “soul print.” In this 73-minute lecture, he describes the principles and practical applications of his philosophy culled from his study of many religious and ethnic traditions. The essence is to better appreciate the life you have and redirect your energy in the parts that make you unhappy. He promises the viewer “access to the precise and gorgeous nature of your spirit,” suggesting exercises like making a list of the 10 most important things in your life. He offers mantras and stories from Buddhism, Russia, West Africa, and his own ministry–even singing a short “soul print song” a cappella. Much of his advice is common sense (If you treat the waiter badly, he will treat you badly), but he presents it in an energetic and inspiring manner. However, this PBS Special is interrupted so frequently with shots of an enthusiastically applauding audience that one might think he was selling a food preparation gadget rather than inner peace. Unfortunately, the effect is that of a hard sell for material that should speak for itself. –Kimberly Heinrichs
Publisher Fox Lorber
UPC 790658993808
Release 2001-04-10
Format DVD
Mpaa rating NR (Not Rated)
Primary Contributor Marc Gafni
Features Color
Running Time 60
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