Books, Poetry & Short Stories

Weiss propounds ‘Open Orthodoxy’ in new book

Journey to Open Orthodoxy by Avraham “Avi” Weiss, Ktav Publishing and Urim Publishing, New York © 2019, ISBN 978-1-60280-318-3, p. 592, plus appendix and index, $29.95. By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – Reform Judaism in eighteenth century Germany and Hasidism in the Ukraine in the same century represent the first modern ruptures in traditional Judaism; […]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion

Rose and Max (z”l) Schindler relate their survivals

Two Who Survived: Keeping Hope Alive While Surviving the Holocaust; Rose & Max Schindler’s story, written by M. Lee Connolly; MRS Publishing © 2019; ISBN 9781738-19877; 179 pages including glossary; $21.95. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – There is a romantic notion in popular Judaism that everyone has a bashert – a special person

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, USA

A modern history of the ancient Middle East

The Cities that Built the Bible by Robert R. Cargill, HarperOne, 2016 By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson DOMEYROT, France — This overview of the history of the Ancient Near East as it relates to the events described in the Bible is written in a language that is accessible to any reader who is not an expert in archaeology

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle East

‘Unfreedom of the Press’ indicts Fourth Estate

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Mark R. Levin’s very informative book Unfreedom of the Press may surprise many readers when they discover that the book is filled with eye-opening fascinating information that is written in clear easy-to-read English. Levin covers many interesting subjects relating to the press, newspapers, TV, radio, attacks on

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., USA

Jewish gay comedian Jason Stuart speaks out

By Eva Trieger SOLANA BEACH, California — Steve Martin said of comedy, “It’s all in the ti-ming.” (He put the accent on the second syllable.) Well, if that be so, the time is now for Jason Stuart. The actor, stand-up comic and lecturer has also become a published author. This weekend celebrated a book signing

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Eva Trieger, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

When our Sky ‘met’ Albert Einstein

  By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Our cousins, Harry and Sherry Jacobson-Beyer of Louisville, Kentucky, paid us a visit, bringing along their 14-year-old grandson, Ethan Jacobson, of Fairhope, Alabama.  Together, with Nancy’s and my grandson, Sky, 12, we visited the Reuben E. Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park. The boys went off in

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, USA

Rabbi in Florida enjoys learning about San Diego

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Donald H. Harrison’s book Schlepping and Schmoozing through San Diego County, Vol. 1 is enjoyable, really fun to read, as one can tell by the book’s title. He has been a journalist since 1962 and is an excellent writer. His articles are not only enjoyable, sometimes witty,

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Travel and Food, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

Waiting for divine help can result in tragedy

By Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin BOCA RATON, Florida — Relying on prayer and divine help in daily life and when problems arise and not following the wise advice of Maimonides to use one’s intelligence, study the laws of nature, and act according to these laws, laws created by God, can, and usually does result in

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion

Comey’s ‘A Higher Loyalty’ details chaos at the top

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — A friend gave me James Comey’s book, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, and it strikes me as worthy of a review. Comey was a bureaucrat. A professional in the field of law, who worked his way from Assistant US Attorney, through positions as lawyer in the private sector,

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Ira Sharkansky, USA

‘Shadow Strike’: Reason for pause for anti- Iran hawks

(c) By Edwin Black WASHINGTON, D.C. —Jerusalem Post editor Yaakov Katz probably had no way of knowing that this would be a perfect time to release his briskly-selling Shadow Strike—Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power (St. Martin’s Press). Or did he? The world’s attention is once again and inevitably riveted to the

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Edwin Black, International, Middle East, USA

How the Bible has been used in U.S. history

Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land, The Hebrew Bible in the United States: A Sourcebook by M. Y. Soloveichik, M. Holbreich, J. Silver, and S. W. Halpern, editors, The Toby Press, New Milford CT, © 2019, ISBN 978-1-59264-465-0, p. 344, $29.95. By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California – Historians generally acknowledge the importance of the Protestant pulpit

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion

Comic- Con may change, but fans still seek advice

By Shor M. Masori SAN DIEGO — Comic-Con has exploded into a place where pop culture fandoms blend, creating an almost amusement-park atmosphere encompassing everything from the biggest Internet Providers to the smallest fledgling writers and artists. But one thing has remained consistent throughout the convention’s 50 meetings over the last 49 years: the inspiration

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Shor M. Masori

Comic-Con has its own kind of sequels

By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Comic books often have their sequels.  So too do appearances at Comic-Con. At the current Comic-Con, a panel on art in the Holocaust was largely a repeat of last year’s panel – with some new information.  Meanwhile, an independent exhibitor, Miriam Libicki, about whom two stories have appeared

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Comic book series promotes Pakistani peace

  By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – Walking through the exhibit hall at Comic-Con, I heard someone ask, “Would you like some free comic books for peace?” and when I turned, there was a smiling young woman wearing a hijab.  Of course, I was interested right away. Could they mean peace between Arabs and

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, San Diego County, USA