Mendele: Yiddish literature and language ______________________________________________________ Contents of Vol. 3.071 August 2, 1993 1) Jerusalem1 and Philologus (Bob Werman) 2) Vegn reyzl's shayle (Bob Berk) 3) Sukkos and Christmas (Reuven-Mendl Turkel) 4) Wreaths (Reyzl Kalifowicz-Waletzky) 1)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun Aug 1 01:45:47 1993 From: RWERMAN%HUJIVMS.bitnet@YaleVM.YCC.Yale.Edu Subject: Jerusalem1 and Philologus I wrote to Jerusalem1 protesting the proposed new list when it was announced and hope that my protest helped its subsequent quiet demise. I am either very angry or greatly chagrined that my fine detective word in identifying Philologus without ever reading any of his columns long before others CONFIRMED my sighting has been so quickly forgotten. From remarks made by others I homed in on the style of H. Halkin which I do recognize. Ah well, I am not a linguist and do not desrve to have identified him. __BW 2)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun Aug 1 15:54:14 1993 From: BERK%ZODIAC.bitnet@YaleVM.YCC.Yale.Edu Subject: vegn reyzl's shayle To Reyzl Kalifowicz-Waletzky: sholem aleykhem - i just finished reading your posting to mendele where, inter alia, you wonder if your postings should be shorter. let me just say that, as far as i'm concerned, zolstu lebn un gezunt zayn [as my grandmother used to say] and continue to post whatever is on your mind. i have enjoyed reading what you have chosen to convey to the mendele audience and especially appreciate that you discuss folklore, which has been rather ignored til now in that medium. bob berk [borok]. 3)---------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun Aug 1 23:37:03 1993 From: rmt51@cas.org (Rick Turkel, Ext. 2214, Room 4414B bs"d) Subject: Sukkos and Christmas The discussions by Reyzl Kalifowicz-Waletzky (3.068) and Meylekh Viswanath (3.070) on Christmas decorations in the sukka remind me of a reverse situation I learned about at a symposium on Yugoslav Folk Arts in 1976 at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. A Croatian presenter was discussing a custom called 'cimer' ( Subject: Wreaths I am forwarding (with permission) two personal responses I received last week in reference to my posting about wreaths: Date: Sat Jul 24, 1993 9:28 pm EST From: WEINDAN EMS: INTERNET / MCI ID: 376-5414 MBX: WEINDAN%HWS.bitnet@cunyvm.cuny.edu Dear Reyzl: I just read your message on Mendele regarding the Christmas/ Succah decorations and found it very interesting. I am a silent sub- scriber to Mendele; frankly, electronic communication still terrifies me - but - I have also thought about some of the lovely wreath decorations (and even received a hand-made decorated grape-vine wreath as a gift). However, I was unable to bring myself to display it because I have always felt that wreaths were symbolic of the "crown of thorns" that JC wore at his crucifixion, and therefore, more of a religious symbol than an xmas tree or easter egg. So, even though a grapevine is a wonderful symbol for most of the Jewish holidays; in the shape of a wreath I find it too potently Christian. On the Sukkah decorations side, this year at our communal sukkah building one of the locals brought along some mylar cut out fruits that were given to him by a visiting Israeli professor as a Sukkot gift - they are apparently very popular as Sukkah decorations in Israel. And, a few years back another visiting Israeli prof. was surprised to see some of the wooden toy xmas tree decorations in the stores in December; he thought they were Sukkah decorations this being the only context that he had ever seen them in. Perhaps what all of this goes to prove is that somewhere there is a very wise marketing person out there - finding goods markets where none used to exist! Lorinda Weinstock Date: Sun Jul 25, 1993 3:56 pm EST From: Zachary M. Baker EMS: INTERNET / MCI ID: 376-5414 MBX: BM.YIB%RLG@forsythe.stanford.edu Reyzl -- Two comments about your latest postings in MENDELE: (1) Whew! (He wipes his brow...) (2) If those mylar Christmas decorations are indeed made in the Orient, then would it not be more accurate (assuming they're _not_ made in the Philippines) to say that they're "produced by Buddhists and Confucianists for Christians and haredi Jews"? Zay gezunt -- Za[c]k ______________________________________________________ End of Mendele Vol. 3.071 If your message is intended for MENDELE, please write to: mendele@yalevm.ycc.yale.edu If you want to discuss personal business or have a shmues with the shames, please write to: nmiller@starbase.trincoll.edu Please sign your articles.