Tag Archives: Yom Kippur

Jew of the Week: Hank Greenberg

The Hebrew Hammer

Hank Greenberg - 'The Hebrew Hammer'

Hank Greenberg – ‘The Hebrew Hammer’

Hyman ‘Henry Benjamin’ Greenberg (1911-1986) was born in New York to a Romanian-Jewish family. As a child, he was faced with many physical challenges, including flat feet, a stutter, and lack of coordination. He worked hard to overcome these issues, becoming his high school’s best all-around athlete, especially in basketball. He preferred baseball though, and after a year of university was signed by the Detroit Tigers. At 19, he became the youngest player ever to make the big leagues. He went on to be a 5-time All-Star and 2-time MVP, still holding the American League record for most RBIs in a single season. Not forgetting his heritage, one of his most famous moments was abstaining from playing a critical game because it was scheduled on Yom Kippur. In the midst of his baseball career, World War II began, and Greenberg was the first player to be drafted to the US Army. He was soon released from the military, but that was two days before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Greenberg thus re-enlisted – the first Major League player to volunteer – and served for 45 months, the longest of any baseball player. He rose to the rank of First Lieutenant in the US Air Force, fighting in China, Burma, and India. At the end of the war he returned to baseball, still in good form and immediately making the All-Star team. He was later sold to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who offered him $80,000 so that he wouldn’t retire, making him the highest-paid player of that time period. After retiring, he turned to management and brought great success to several teams, especially the Cleveland Indians. Perhaps most significantly, Greenberg changed the face of the sport, sponsoring more African-Americans than any other baseball executive. In fact, he befriended and supported Jackie Robinson, the very first African-American player in the major leagues. Having experienced severe racism and anti-Semitism of his own, Greenberg worked hard to make the world of sport open and equal to all. A Hall of Famer, Greenberg is still considered one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

 

Words of the Week

The entire world is a very narrow bridge, and the most important thing is not to be afraid at all.
– Rabbi Nachman of Breslov

Jews of the Week: Sandy Koufax & Ryan Braun

Best Baseball Players in the World

Sandy Koufax

Since the very beginnings of baseball, the sport has been dominated by great Jewish players: Hank Greenberg, Buddy Myer, Al Rosen, Ken Holtzman and many more. Perhaps most famous of all is Sandy Koufax, the greatest left-handed pitcher of all time, who actually started out as a basketball player in Brooklyn. The first person to win the Cy Young Award (for best pitcher) three times, he was also the league MVP in 1963. Koufax’s shining moment was when he refused to play the first game of the World Series because it was on Yom Kippur. He came back to lead his trailing team to the World Series victory, which earned him the Sportsman of the Year Award. Forced to retire at the young age of 30 due to arthritis, he became the youngest player ever to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Interestingly, Koufax’s last name at birth was Braun, like this year’s baseball MVP Ryan Braun, nicknamed “The Hebrew Hammer”. The son of an Israeli, he has recently said, “I am Jewish… I’m extremely proud to be a role model for young Jewish kids.”

Words of the Week

Ryan Braun

Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed.
– Gandhi

Jew of the Week: Rebecca

Yom Kippur Begins Friday!

Yom Kippur, by Gottlieb (1878)

Rivka bat Betuel (c. 1677-1554 BCE) Often known simply as “Rebecca”, she is famous for being one of the four Matriarchs of Israel, wife of Isaac and mother of Jacob and Esau. A prophetess of the highest degree, she communicated with God to determine the fates of her twin children. Later, she out-prophesied her husband and drafted an ingenious plan for Jacob to rightfully receive the divine blessings (thus ensuring Jewish survival and continuity). Rivka is the Torah’s epitome of modesty, true love and purity. In fact, the first time the Torah mentions the words “love” and “virgin” are in regards to her. Embodying an incredible measure of strength – perhaps the first icon of girl power – she single-handedly watered Eliezer’s 10 camels. (That’s about 2000 litres of water that she personally hauled from a well!) Yom Kippur is her birthday.

Words of the Week

It’s better to eat in order to pray, than to pray in order to eat.
– Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch (1789-1866)