Sunday, April 18, 2010

Being a Zionist...

...does not mean singing everything in the siddur to the melody of Hatikva.
Or so the NF thought until this past Shabbat.

Kabbalat Shabbat was led by Timmy --- who sang Lecha Dodi to Hatikva. Kitsch! The NF was not terribly bothered because I was deeply engrossed in  a really interesting book recently purchased at the Mossad Harav Kook book sale. The NF's mother-in-law, spending shabbat with Mr. and Mrs. NF was not nearly as generous and grumbled all the way home that using Hatikva for Lecha Dodi was cheesy, kitschy and boring. (For those of you who know my very Israeli Mo in Law, you will recall that she worked for years in the Israeli ministry of tourism in various consular offices --- we suspect she was actually Mossad---...I didn't think anything in the world could be too cheesy or kitschy in her book.)

Shabbat morning, Shloime Baruch hastely put together a choir to sing Avinu Avinu with full choral accompaniment. Given that they had all of about 15 minutes to practice, it actually sounded allright (if a bit flat). You may recall that the NF is not opposed to  singing Avinu Avinu the Shabbat before Yom Haatzmaut (and the first shabbat of a war*).  However, for the second non-choral half of tefilla lshalom hamedina, Shloime read prose style while the choir hummed hatikva. Cheeeeeeesy. The NF almost barfed on his shoes.

Then at the end of musaf, someone thought it would be a good idea to sing Anim Zemirot to Hatikva. The NF really wanted to scream "Enough!" Instead of doing this cheesy, faux-zionist crap, how about finding ways to improve the country. Here are a few ways:
1. Introduce the concept of customer service,
2. Refrain from picking your nose in public
3. Stop peeing on the side of the road towards on-coming traffic.
4. Block the import of henna-hair colouring dyes/products so that the 99.9% of women over 59 in Israel who colour their hair will stop looking like Bozo the clown.
5. Teach people how to drive

Disgusted, the NF went home from shul and decided to show his family what true zionism really is by making kiddush on Hummus flavoured schnnaps.

-The NF

BTW, after hearing yet another part of davening sung to the melody of Hatikva, the Rishon Ltzion of Uruguay suggested that we sing Hatikva to the melody of Hava Nagila (try it --- it's much harder than you think).



* if a second war breaks out in the same calendar year, there is no need to sing Avinu Avinu again.

6 comments:

Gonging Gabbai said...

Considering that I may be fighting in the next war, it would comfort me to know that you at home are suffering as well. Albeit through long drawn out renditions of avini avini if not from bullets flying past your ears.

ADDeRabbi said...

"Be-shilton ha-kofrim" to the tune of Hatikva is my all-time favorite.

Anonymous said...

Where in the Shabbat liturgy is the prayer "Avinu Avinu?" Someone has asked me about it and I am unfamiliar with it.

Thanks

The NF said...

Avinu Avinu on this blog is making reference to one way תפילה לשלום המדינה is sung in the NF's shul. It is based on a composition by Chazzan Yaakov Motzen and begins with the repeating of the word Avinu. (As in Avinu Shebashayim, Tzur Yisrael...)
you can hear an a capella version of the composition here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3G6Yz3wdcY&feature=PlayList&p=528C72DB3583C269&playnext_from=PL&index=3

the NF said...

Anonymous -
As I'm not sure which movement yo uare part of (Orthodox, Conservative etc) let me be clarify --- the prayer for the state of Isreal (תפילה לשלום המדינה) is said in most modern Orthodox Shuls (in both Israel and in the diaspora) after the Haftora.

Rafi said...

LOL I can't stop laughing ~ Really hilarious ~ AND, I'm learning -yshar koach -
can you direct me to an audio or something so I can learn a nusach for kegavna?
Thanks I'm a regualar reader