This was done March 24, 2008 at Nessah synagogue in Beverly Hillls, a nominally Orthodox Persian shul.
Dennis Prager: “I grew up in an East European Hasidic shtibble in New York. The rabbi was from Romania. Ultra-Orthodox. In order to do Maftir Yonah, the greatest honor of the year was to recite maftir and the book of Yonah on Yom Kippur, you bought it… You bought every single honor at the shul. No dough, no go up to the Torah. No one resented it because it was the only way this poor rabbi could support this little nothing shtibl on East 17th Street in Brooklyn.
“My father bought maftir Yonah every year. He wanted that kavod (honor). God bless him. He installed the air conditioning at that shul.”
“Three of the four matriarchs are described as beautiful. Not as brilliant or talented or possible surgeons.”
