Letter from the Editor

The other day, as an unseasonably cold wind blew outside, I sat in our cozy office in Washington, DC, surrounded as usual by overflowing shelves of books. It occurred to me that there were several anniversaries to mark. In 1975, Elie Wiesel named Moment for Der Moment, an independent Yiddish-language newspaper in Warsaw that was founded in 1910, nearly 100 years ago. By this same reckoning, it’s been 70 years since Der Moment was shut down by the Nazis, and an era of illuminating Jewish journalism went dark.

These anniversaries, of a happy event and a tragic one, come at a time when today’s Moment is in the midst of a series on the new Eastern Europe. Last issue, we published a piece on the massive Jewish pilgrimage to Uman, the Ukrainian city where Rebbe Nachman was buried, and in an upcoming volume, we will explore the remarkable renaissance of Jewish culture in Poland.

In this issue, we present the story of a popular university in Kiev, Ukraine, that conducted an anti-Zionism campaign beginning in 2002 and ending in 2007. It harkens back to Europe’s anti-Semitic past but with a modern twist, as the newly independent country’s nation-building efforts confront an ugly side of Ukrainian nationalism. Among the story’s cast members are David Duke, the former Grand Wizard of the Klu Klux Klan; former KGB operatives; and some of Ukraine’s leading politicians, including President Viktor Yushchenko.

My travels in Ukraine were an object lesson in European anti-Semitism and the political and psychological legacy of the Soviet Union. But I also saw much hope for Ukraine’s future, and the future of the country’s vibrant and increasingly vocal Jewish community.

My journey touched me in another way. All four of my grandparents were born in what is now Ukraine. I was there a mere eight days, but between a frenzy of interviews in Uman and Kiev, I managed to visit three of the villages and towns where my grandparents were born. I was the first person in my family to return since they departed between 1880 and 1915. This was something I had long dreamed of doing and the rewards far surpassed what I had imagined. In one village, I met the man who, as a boy, had cared for the cow that was destined for my cousin’s wedding feast, and discovered that at least two of my relatives had managed to leave for Palestine before the Holocaust. The rest of the family perished.

Eastern Europe is but one of the destinations to which this issue will transport you. We’ll take you to London to meet Britain’s foreign secretary, David Miliband, a child of Holocaust survivors, and to San Francisco and New York to learn of the roots of the “traditional” Jewish affinity for Chinese food. We stop in Hollywood to peek at the influence Jews have had on Christmas movies. We also cover a topic of unending interest, converts to Judaism: An actress-social worker who was once a Mormon, a physician who was born Muslim, a former Baptist minister and five others tell us why they chose to become Jewish. In addition, we proudly publish the first-place winning story of the 2008 Moment Magazine-Karma Foundation Short Fiction Contest, by Racelle Rosett, once a writer for the popular TV series, thirtysomething.

In our opinion section, David Frum reflects on the passing of two conservative legends, Irving Kristol and William Safire. Naomi Ragen gives us her take on Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s foreign minister. Eric Alterman tells us why most American Jews vote with their pocketbooks while Gershom Gorenberg ponders the practical implications of folk tales in midrash.

We have a treat for book lovers this issue with the launch of “Speaking Volumes.” In the inaugural article, writer Jay Michaelson recalls the transformative experience he had while reading Your Word is Fire: Hasidic Masters on Contemplative Prayer. Moment’s editors and contributors also share their picks of 2009’s most intriguing books. The book reviews are, as always, first-rate: There’s Christopher R. Browning’s Remembering Survival: Inside a Nazi Slave-Labor Camp; Benjamin Moser’s biography of the brilliant Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector; and Daniel Silva’s latest thriller, The Defector.

In 2010, Moment will celebrate its 35th year. Moment has weathered the ups and downs of the economy and the publishing industry and grown along with the changing needs and interests of American Jews. This is a magazine with a great lineage that could well have passed into history; instead it’s as independent as ever and run by a new generation devoted to the continual rediscovery of where we have been as a people, where we are and where we may be going. Each issue is an exciting adventure into Jewish politics, culture and religion. We learn joyfully along the way, and hope you do, too.

We’re planning a good many festivities for the upcoming year, plus new sections and an expansion of Spice Box, an old favorite that will soon include Moment’s very own cartoon caption contest. I’ll keep you informed on all of these exciting developments and look forward to sharing our 35th anniversary year with you. Meanwhile, I wish you a very warm and wonderful Hanukkah!

Please remember Moment in your year-end giving. We’re an independent non-profit 501(c)3 and your contributions are fully tax deductible. Every gift makes a huge difference. You can click here to donate. —Thank you.