I recently perused our local Jewish newspaper. A large full-color ad caught my eye. It was for a chicken and seafood market. The poultry was touted as hormone free. The seafood was locally caught.
There were pictures of apples and honey, a shofar, a pomegranate, and bottles of wine. There was a card wishing customers a shanah tovah in Hebrew letters. The ad encouraged readers to “Place your Rosh Hashanah Orders Now!” Items included “fresh made gefilte fish” and “fresh made chopped liver.”
My interest was piqued and I checked the ad for the hechsher (certificate of kashrut). It was nowhere to be found. Leaving out this important component of a kosher store’s advertising is a major oversight. I went to the website to get the information that seemed to have been forgotten.
When I checked out the shop’s website, I realized I had been operating under a false premise. There was no hechsher because the store was not kosher. Shellfish including stone crabs, shrimp, clams, oysters, and squid were proudly advertised. The online menu included conch chowder, BLT sandwiches, cheeseburgers, and a holiday special of spiral ham.
American slang has it that something is “not kosher” when it seems to be wrong or phony. This definition does not relate to the halachas (Jewish laws) about food but rather an atmosphere of unethical activity. I would say that the ad I described fits both definitions. It is not kosher by halachic standards. And it is a deceptive depiction.
One can only surmise the reaction of readers to an ad in an Islamic newspaper wishing a joyous Eid Al-Fitr if that ad emanated from a shop that sold pork products.
The contrived Rosh Hashanah celebration ad and its inappropriate smorgasbord of kosher and non-kosher is, unfortunately, an all-too revealing glimpse at how Judaism is misrepresented in the world today. On the outside it looks appetizing. On the inside it lacks taste. The certificate of authenticity is lacking. It is treif.