By Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal
SAN DIEGO — It is rare for me to have a “Big Mac Attack.” While I did eat treif in my youth, I swore it off in my college years. I have observed Kashrut since then. Golden Arches no longer entice me. For me they do not exist. I pass by unfazed. Until this week, that is.
Judy and I vacationed in Buenos Aires this week. Most people we told thought it an odd vacation destination. We explained that our daughter, Adina, had been there twice and loved this enormous and vibrant city. Besides, it is the largest Jewish community in Latin America. The official count is 200,000, but residents believe it is closer to 400,000. San Diego, by comparison, in 2003 had 89,000 Jews.
Here is another (sad) comparison: Buenos Aires has twenty-seven Kosher restaurants. San Diego has one, if you count the few tables set aside for dining at The Place on El Cajon Blvd.
Among the Kosher establishments in Buenos Aires is a Kosher McDonalds, the only one outside of Israel. It is located not in the older Jewish neighborhood, but in an ultramodern shopping mall. (For those who insist on mixing milk with meat, the mall also hosts two other treif McDonalds.)
I could not allow this unique culinary opportunity to pass me by. The Kosher Golden Arches beckoned, and I could not resist. Judy and I indulged in a deluxe double quarter pounder with french fries (don’t worry, we split them). I wish I could say it was heavenly. It was not: it was McDonalds. It was (and I mean this literally) a once in a lifetime experience for us.
Puerto Madero
Argentina is famous for its beef, and fortunately we were able to dine at a couple of excellent kosher steak houses. We also visited one of the JCC’s where Judy, of course, had located an Israeli dance session; we walked the Jewish neighborhoods (mezzuzot everywhere, even on the doors of businesses), and attended Shabbat services at one of the Masorti (Conservative) synagogues that is housed in an ornate historic building.
Sinagoga Central
We had wanted to visit the headquarters of the local Jewish community but were not allowed to enter because of security concerns. You may remember that this Jewish Center was bombed by terrorists in 1994, resulting in 85 deaths and 300 injuries. The security is well deserved. We were invited to call to make an appointment for a formal tour, but ran out of time.
What fascinated me, however, is that when the center’s security officer addressed us, he did not use Spanish or English. He spoke in Hebrew and that is how we replied. At the end of our conversation he apologized for not allowing us in, but then wished us, “Shabbat Shalom.”
Here we were, 6,000 miles from San Diego and 7,600 from Israel and Hebrew was still our common language. “Shabbat Shalom” was our common greeting. Kosher (McDonalds or not) was our common heritage. We experienced living proof of the unity of the Jewish people, and our connection with our brothers and sisters all over the world.
Casa Rosa
Parashat Toldot literally means the parasha of generations. “This is the story of Isaac, son of Abraham. Abraham begot Isaac.” (Gen. 25:19) The parasha continues with the birth of Esau and Jacob. We know from the outset that despite Jacob’s trickery, he is the one whom God chose to continue God’s covenant with Abraham.
From Jacob came the Twelve Tribes of Israel, and many generations later, us. We are the descendants of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob, Leah, and Rachel. Whether we live in San Diego, Tel Aviv, or Buenos Aires, we are the members of the same mishpacha (family) with all of the curses but many, many blessings that come with being related.
*
Rosenthal is spiritual leader of Tifereth Israel Synagogue in San Diego