Jewish Religion

Israel’s diverse population yields many factions

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — There are attractions in the Jewish State, but also problems. Given its location and population, no surprise that they are the problems of living with Jews, and Arabs. They aren’t the same problems, and it isn’t obvious which are the most serious, or threatening. Arab citizens are some 20 percent of […]

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Ira Sharkansky, Jewish Religion, Middle East

Scion of chief rabbinical family breaks ranks over intermarriage

Amichai Lau-Lavie to leave Conservative rabbinic group; seeks new definition for non-Jewish partners. By Gary Rosenblatt If you had to describe Amichai Lau-Lavie’s rationale for breaking ranks with the Conservative movement, as he is about to do, on its prohibition against rabbis performing intermarriages, it might be this: Love trumps tribe. A popular and dynamic

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Jewish Religion, USA

Settler rabbi who praised attacks on Arabs indicted for incitement

Charges cite a 2013 article in which Yosef Elitzur said so-called ‘price tag’ assailants are those ‘who take responsibility for the security of Jews’ By Jacob Magid Rabbi Yosef Elizur (c) speaks with his lawyer in the Rishon Lezion court. August 2010 (Roni Schutzer/Flash90) A settler rabbi who praised and encouraged attacks against Palestinians in

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Jewish Religion, Middle East

Ivanka Trump Mistakes Judaism As One of The World’s Largest Religions

Ivanka Trump, President Donald Trump’s daughter and one of his personal advisers, incorrectly identified Judaism as one of the three largest world religions during her Monday appearance on “Fox & friends.” Read: Ivanka Trump To Appear On ‘Fox & Friends’: What To Expect From Her Interview During her appearance on the cable morning news show,

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Jewish Religion, USA

Rabbi Sacks essays on the Book of Numbers

Covenant & Conversation, Numbers: The Wilderness Years, A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, Maggid Books and The Orthodox Union, Jerusalem, © 2017, ISBN 978-1-68025-294-1, p. 171, plus glossary, $14.95 By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California –  World-renown rabbi and scholar Rabbi Jonathan Sacks begins with the assertion that the Book of

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

Was the whale created by Jonah’s subconscious mind?

Unusual Bible Interpretations: Jonah and Amos, by Rabbi Israel Drazin; Gefen Publishing House, 2016; ISBN-10: 9652298859; ISBN-13: 978-9652298850 By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel CHULA VISTA, California — I would like to begin this book review with a conversation I had with the publisher of San Diego Jewish World, Don Harrison. He asked me whether there was

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

‘Just Kidding:’ If Ruth’s Moabite family wrote to her

By Joel H. Cohen (A Shavuot highlight is the reading of the Book of Ruth, a remarkable widow who, rather than return to her native Moab and her own family, chose to stay with her mother-in-law and accompany her on her spiritual and physical journey, adopting her people and religion. How Ruth’s family reacted to that

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Jewish Religion, Joel H. Cohen, Trivia, Humor & Satire

Rajoub’s Statements on Buraq Wall Provokes Palestinian Ire

Ramallah – Fatah central committee official Jibril Rajoub’s recent remarks that Jerusalem’s Buraq Wall “must remain under Jewish sovereignty” sparked a wave of criticism among Palestinians. He told Israel’s Channel 2 television that he agrees that the Buraq Wall (Wailing Wall) should remain under Israeli control. US President Donald Trump visited the site, he noted,

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Jewish Religion, Middle East

What I learned at Sinai

Lisa Silverstein Tzur Many years ago when I was a student rabbi, our congregation was chosen to receive one of the 1800 Czechoslovakian torah scrolls confiscated by the Nazis during WWII. Decades after the war, one by one, these sifrei torah were redistributed to congregations around the world, and we were ecstatic to accept one

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Jewish Religion

Jewish trivia quiz: Shavuot & Dairy

By Mark D. Zimmerman MELVILLE, New York — It is traditional to eat dairy products, such as cheesecake and blintzes, on Shavuot. Many reasons have been cited for this custom, including which of the following? A. In the Hebrew tradition of Gematria, where the numerical value of words is considered for interpretation, chalav, meaning milk, has a value

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Jewish Religion, Mark D. Zimmerman, Trivia, Humor & Satire