What if blessing
is not only what happens,
but how we learn to see
what happens? [Betzy Lynch]
Spirit of Elul will help you examine your consciousness Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Staff and Bylined Contributors
One of the two essays on the Song of Songs—“Blurring the Boundaries Between Divine and Human Love: The Sanctification of the Song of Songs”—is the volume’s centerpiece. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]
Interpreting and analyzing the five megillot Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Comic-Con has been over for a while, but some of its most useful panels have gone mostly unreported. Room 3 is the convention’s primary classroom, where working professionals teach the crafts behind their work. [Shor M. Masori]
Learning to craft and protect a story Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
Am I shocked? Not really. From the very beginning, I was told that Stage-IV cancer is considered manageable but not curable. (Though I still reject the absoluteness of that statement. I know firsthand that anything is possible.) And truthfully, before the scans and biopsies confirmed the reoccurrence, I knew it was back. [Shayna Kaufmann]
Compassion, as outlined in her book, helps Kaufmann cope with cancer’s return Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Lifestyles, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Shayna Kaufmann, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Author Deming and illustrator Teplow take us through the process of decorating a sukkah, with especial attention to such kid-friendly activities as hanging fruit and vegetables from the support beams of the ceiling; making paper chains; indulging passions for many colors; and participating in the ancient ritual of shaking the etrog and lulav to the east, south, west, north, above and below. [Donald H. Harrison]
Book explains holiday of Sukkot to tykes Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Staff and Bylined Contributors
By the morning after Comic-Con, the giant studio wraps and offsites had been dismantled. The Gaslamp sign over Fifth Avenue, which had spent the weekend disguised as an Eastern European gateway for Avengers: Doomsday, was once again the familiar entrance to the Gaslamp Quarter’s main street. More than 135,000 fans had come and gone, taking their costumes, props and collective, humidity-enhanced body odor home. (Shor M. Masori)
A tale of three cons Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Opinion, San Diego County, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
A family tradition invites a representative of each generation to add her own touch to the recipe. Greatgrandma (Nana) added raisins to the mixture; grandma (Bubbe) added diced onions; Stella’s mother (Mama)added crushed garlic; and after much consideration, Stella chose to add a drizzle of honey. [Donald H. Harrison]
Jewish horror writer Max Brooks told the audience at a Comic-Con panel titled “Creature Feature Reboot: Monsters of Horror” that the present is a scary time, though not necessarily a dark one. It is a time of change, and human beings hate the unknown. (Shor M. Masori)
Comic-Con weighs this era’s impact on fiction writers Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Lifestyles, San Diego County, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Leonard Maltin was 14 years old when he opened the Manhattan telephone directory and searched for Reuben “Rube” Goldberg. (Shor M. Masori)
Opening the fourth wall: From Rube Goldberg to Stuart Bloom Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Jewish History, Lifestyles, Shor M. Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA
The presentation explored how the Jewish identities and experiences of many of comics’ most influential creators shaped the stories they told and the heroes they created. (Cailin Acosta)
Panel traces historic Jewish influence on the comic book industry Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Cailin Acosta, Jewish History, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined ContributorsThe Ninth of Av, “Tisha B’Av is the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, as this is the date both Holy Temples were destroyed, and exile, persecution, and spiritual darkness began. [Cailin Acosta]
Juxtaposition of Tisha b’Av and Comic-Con Read More »
Antisemitism, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Cailin Acosta, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Travel and Food
Grossman, a professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University, is widely known for demonstrating how careful attention to the structure and wording of the biblical text reveals layers of multiple meaning that are often overlooked. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
‘Creation:’ The story of beginnings by Jonathan Grossman Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined ContributorsHis work appeals to readers across a broad spectrum of Jewish backgrounds because he seeks to demonstrate that many profound ideas emerge from paying close attention to the Torah’s own language before consulting later commentators.[Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
Textual analysis of Deuteronomy offers little-known facts Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion, Staff and Bylined Contributors
He argued that by defending Jewish writers against coordinated cultural boycotts, the organization was unethically restricting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which he views as constitutionally protected political speech. [Barrett Holman Leak]
PEN America president’s resignation is in service to BDS movement Read More »
Antisemitism, Barrett Holman Leak, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel, Jewish History, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA