Page 4 - The Jewish Voice - January '20

Page 4, The Jewish Voice

LocaL happenings

Federation Names Levin Vice Beach,” shared Michael Hoffman, President and CEO of Jewish that was placed into my life by those who understood the

President of Palm Beach Island Federation of Palm Beach County. “Hope has demonstrated importance of education has transformed my life. I count
it an honor, and have made it part of my personal mission,
a capability and a passion for learning what dedicated
Development community members care most about, and connecting them to ensure that future generations are afforded the same
with opportunities to lead with their philanthropy to create invaluable opportunities that strengthen their Jewish identity
With an emphasis on significant impact.” and connections to their community.”
continuing to cultivate a high- Levin’s commitment to Jewish communal service began Born and raised in the Chicago area, Hope is a graduate
caliber professional team, during an internship with the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan of the University of Illinois, Champaign Urbana, and received
Jewish Federation of Palm Chicago. Immediately following, she received a scholarship her MSW at the Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva
Beach County announced from that Federation to complete a yearlong program in University in New York City.
Hope Levin as Vice President Israel where she lived in the desert town of Arad and then in For the 2019-2020 campaign period, Jewish Federation has
of Development. In this role, Jerusalem. She was also a recipient of a Federation Executive outlined its continued focus on four key priorities: standing
Levin is focused on elevating Recruitment Education Program Award, a scholarship program up to antisemitism, caring for those facing poverty and other
Federation’s presence on funded through the Jewish Federations of North America crises, connecting children and teens to their Jewish identity,
Palm Beach Island to connect and the Mandel Center for Leadership Excellence to recruit, and creating powerful experiences that connect people to
leadership and donors to support, and develop future professional leaders for the North Jewish values, holidays, and Israel.
meaningful opportunities that American Jewish Federation system.
strengthen the local and global Jewish communities. Levin shared, “The personal investment and good faith Local Happenings on page 5
Levin has more than 25 years of experience working in the
nonprofit sector. She returns to Federation after serving for
three years as Senior Vice President and Managing Director
for Israel and Global Philanthropy at The Jewish Agency for
Israel — a global partner of Federation — where she worked
with Jewish communities throughout North America to raise
awareness about the international impact they create through
their philanthropy.
Hope started at Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County
in 1992, when she first moved to the Palm Beaches and served
as Young Leadership Director, launching the Business and
Professionals division and continuing to have roles over the
years in both planning and development. Most recently in
2015, she served as a Senior Vice President, responsible for
Israel and Overseas allocations, local Israel programming,
and supervising the community’s shlichim (Israeli emissary)
program.
“We are thrilled to welcome Hope back to our team to
continue strengthening our growing community in Palm

From the Rabbis from page 3

sensitive — crying when he is reunited with his brothers.
He wears a fancy coat of many colors while his brothers
are dressed as simple shepherds. Plus, he refuses to sleep
with Potiphar’s wife.”
I paused again. Which stereotype did I want to address
first? I skipped over the offensive gossiping part and said:
“You know, many gay men dress quite conservatively, and
anyway, refusing to sleep with Potiphar’s wife doesn’t
make him gay. He refused because he ‘kavash et yitzro,’
he conquered his evil instinct. It’s one of the reasons we
call him a tzadik.”
We agreed that Joseph clearly felt different and
was treated as different by those around him, and we
discussed our sense that throughout his life, Joseph was a
lonely character. I pointed out that if it were true, ancient
Canaanite Joseph wouldn’t have had anything close to
a modern gay identity. It ended with my conceding that
although the odds of Joseph being gay might be good —
with Jacob having 12 sons — I wasn’t convinced. But then
I began doing some research into rabbinic literature and
found it is full of stories that certainly allow us to ask the
question.
Of course I understand that one question many people
have is why oh why discuss Joseph’s sexual orientation?
Well, let me turn the question around. Would a gay sexual
identity detract from his accomplishments? On Shabbat
Vayigash (Jan. 24) at Temple Beth David, I will be giving
a sermon about Joseph, a lonely outsider, roughed up by
his brothers and thrown in a pit. It is part of our synagogue
program to make sure that the LGBTQ+ community feels
welcome in our Jewish community. All are welcome to
attend as I present the evidence and raise questions about
tolerance for Joseph, the (possibly) gay tzadik.
Paul Arberman is the spiritual leader at Temple Beth
David in Palm Beach Gardens

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