Nearly 30 years ago, I was visiting my aunt and uncle on the eve of my cousin's wedding in Minneapolis. While, there's a significant amount of family in the twin cities, the bulk of us are scattered around the country and with a couple of hundred of us decending upon them for this wedding, the sisterhood of their synagogue pitched in to feed folks as we materialized at tmy aunt and uncle's place in advance of the wedding day. What's a midwestern family gathering without pot luck, covered-dish suppers?
Arriving from NYC, I was surrounded by the warm, broad, flat, midwestern twangs and sensibilities of my aunt's sisterhood, as one sweet lady I'd never seen before said, "let me fix you a plate!", even before I'd taken off my coat. Apparently, in Minnesota, as in most Jewish families, food equals love. She stopped at an orange Jello mold, that appeared to have carrots, sweet potatoes, and dried fruit suspended within. Trying not to appear skeptical, but innocent, I asked, "umm, what's that?", as she spooned out a rather generous helping.
"Why that's tzimmes, silly!"
"Tzimmes? From what planet?" I thought.
This was unlike any tzimmes I'd ever seen. The dish generally is essence of eastern Europe, a mixture of root vegetables and dried fruits, baked slowly in the dying embers of a bakery oven on Friday nights, so observant Jewish families could have a hot meal mid-day Saturday, without disobeying the ban working on Shabbat. Sweet and sour sauce, generally. Suspended in Jello? Not in my world! I was sure I was dealing with a good Lutheran farm girl, who'd married herself a Jewish boy.
I turned to my aunt and asked in a stage whisper who my benefactrix was. "Shhhh!, that's the rebbitzen!"
Two answers: - Rebbitzen = the Rabbi's wife, generally a major figure in the life of a Jewish congregation, and often she is very active in the workd of the synagogue's sisterhood or women's association. My understanding (which is limited as I've been a practicing Quaker for 30 years and not a member of a synagogue) is that this role is becoming has become less prominent these days with the advent of female rabbis and cantors, and more and more women working outside of the home, particularly within reform, reconstructionist and even conservative congregations.
- No, I did not. I found the combo of orange jello, and root vegetables vile less than appetizing.
Oh, and with regard to your first question, another story.
During my first year in grad school, an old friend from high school and college, decided to take me with him to synagogue for the services one Friday night. As an openly gay man, he was attempting to get into rabbinical school at the time, and he was attending one of NYC's first gay synagogues.
I thought, why the hell not?
We arrived just before sundown for Ma'ariv services. As people began to take their seats, they chatted and the place was rather loud, sound echoing off the hard floors. A tall, slender man of colour was busy moving quickly about the sanctuary, 'shushing' people to be quiet, so services could begin. I had assumed he was the congregation's shabbat goy, a gentile who did the work needed by a congregation on the shabbat, that observant Jews were forbidden to do, like turn on the lights, or adjust the thermostat, or the synagogue's sound system. They do not however generally instruct people to quiet down for services.
I turned to Jordan and asked, " Vus mit der Shabbus Goy?" "Shah!" he responded."That's the Rebbitzen!"
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 07:06 am (UTC)(Jello is never by 'flavor'; always 'color'.)
no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 03:26 pm (UTC)Nearly 30 years ago, I was visiting my aunt and uncle on the eve of my cousin's wedding in Minneapolis. While, there's a significant amount of family in the twin cities, the bulk of us are scattered around the country and with a couple of hundred of us decending upon them for this wedding, the sisterhood of their synagogue pitched in to feed folks as we materialized at tmy aunt and uncle's place in advance of the wedding day. What's a midwestern family gathering without pot luck, covered-dish suppers?
Arriving from NYC, I was surrounded by the warm, broad, flat, midwestern twangs and sensibilities of my aunt's sisterhood, as one sweet lady I'd never seen before said, "let me fix you a plate!", even before I'd taken off my coat. Apparently, in Minnesota, as in most Jewish families, food equals love. She stopped at an orange Jello mold, that appeared to have carrots, sweet potatoes, and dried fruit suspended within. Trying not to appear skeptical, but innocent, I asked, "umm, what's that?", as she spooned out a rather generous helping.
"Why that's tzimmes, silly!"
"Tzimmes? From what planet?" I thought.
This was unlike any tzimmes I'd ever seen. The dish generally is essence of eastern Europe, a mixture of root vegetables and dried fruits, baked slowly in the dying embers of a bakery oven on Friday nights, so observant Jewish families could have a hot meal mid-day Saturday, without disobeying the ban working on Shabbat. Sweet and sour sauce, generally. Suspended in Jello? Not in my world! I was sure I was dealing with a good Lutheran farm girl, who'd married herself a Jewish boy.
I turned to my aunt and asked in a stage whisper who my benefactrix was. "Shhhh!, that's the rebbitzen!"
no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 11:00 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 02:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 12:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 03:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-15 04:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-08-16 02:29 am (UTC)- what/who is a rebbitzen?
and
- did you enjoy the extraterrestrial tzimmes?
no subject
Date: 2008-08-16 02:54 am (UTC)- Rebbitzen = the Rabbi's wife, generally a major figure in the life of a Jewish congregation, and often she is very active in the workd of the synagogue's sisterhood or women's association. My understanding (which is limited as I've been a practicing Quaker for 30 years and not a member of a synagogue) is that this role is becoming has become less prominent these days with the advent of female rabbis and cantors, and more and more women working outside of the home, particularly within reform, reconstructionist and even conservative congregations.
- No, I did not. I found the combo of orange jello, and root vegetables
vileless than appetizing.no subject
Date: 2008-08-17 09:43 pm (UTC)During my first year in grad school, an old friend from high school and college, decided to take me with him to synagogue for the services one Friday night. As an openly gay man, he was attempting to get into rabbinical school at the time, and he was attending one of NYC's first gay synagogues.
I thought, why the hell not?
We arrived just before sundown for Ma'ariv services. As people began to take their seats, they chatted and the place was rather loud, sound echoing off the hard floors. A tall, slender man of colour was busy moving quickly about the sanctuary, 'shushing' people to be quiet, so services could begin. I had assumed he was the congregation's shabbat goy, a gentile who did the work needed by a congregation on the shabbat, that observant Jews were forbidden to do, like turn on the lights, or adjust the thermostat, or the synagogue's sound system. They do not however generally instruct people to quiet down for services.
I turned to Jordan and asked, " Vus mit der Shabbus Goy?"
"Shah!" he responded."That's the Rebbitzen!"