Ancient Groove: International Sephardi Music Festival in Cordoba … Brave Old World: Song of the Lodz Ghetto … Chava Alberstein … [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]
Streaming Jewish music Read More »
Judaism, Lawrence Baron, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts
A year ago, on the eve of the Seder, I was on a mission to bring Passover items to several regional Chabad centers, with the last stop being Chabad of Poway. With a van full of Passover foodstuff that I picked up in L.A. I drove to San Diego in a bid to deliver Seder essentials before the holiday was about to commence. [Omer Zalmanowitz]
Dear Lori Kaye, I still have your photo on my Facebook wall Read More »
Jewish History, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County
The State of Israel marks the 72nd anniversary of its creation today, according to the Hebraic calendar. Blessed is the beloved historical homeland! [Rabbi Ben Kamin]
Israel is 72 years young Read More »
Jewish History, Middle East
This week’s double Torah portion, Acharei and Kedoshim, leaps off the scroll with relevance to the pandemic of our times, COVID, or if you prefer, kaf, bet, dalet—the equivalent our English letters, K, V, D, forms the root for the word Kavod. What’s honor have to do with these parshiot? Plenty. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D]
Where’s the Kovid in COVID? Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
This story appears to have begun in 1984 but, in truth, it began in 1967. That was when I read the book by Elie Wiesel, The Jews of Silence, about Soviet Jewry who, the oppression notwithstanding, would come out of the shadows to celebrate on Simhat Torah. I was captivated by the book, and had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Wiesel when he attended a community-wide rally in Cleveland that year. [Toby Klein Greenwald]
Last week I gave my first Zoom lecture for the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture and over 90 people registered for it. Since this kind of programming is happening around the country, I’ve prepared a list of some sites you might want to peruse. [Laurie Baron, Ph.D]
Live Jewish Streaming Read More »
Judaism, Lawrence Baron, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
In commemoration of Israel’s Yom Hazikaron (Day of Remembrance) and Yom Ha’atzma’ut (Independence Day), I have selected my sister Zina Schiff’s recording, The Golden Dove. Although the recording features composers of Russia’s Society for Jewish Folk Music, five of the composers on the recording — Engel, Weinberg, Rosowsky, Saminsky, and Achron — spent time in Palestine and influenced the early music of the pre-state Yishuv (Jewish settlement in Palestine). [Eileen Wingard]
Jewish folk music for Yom Zikaron, Yom Ha’atzma’ut Read More »
Eileen Wingard, Jewish History, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts
The name of slain Lori Gilbert Kaye, who died a year ago during a gunman’s attack on Chabad of Poway, was linked Monday in Latrun, Israel, to the names of Israel’s fallen soldiers during an annual Yom Hizakron (Day of Memory) ceremony. To view the entire ceremony on Facebook, click here. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]
Israeli Memorial Day rites include Poway’s Lori Kaye Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Joe Gandelman, Middle East, San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
In the classic Torah Min Hashamayim Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel (1907-1972) masterly tells the methodology of Rabbi Akiva and the difference between him and Rabbi Ishmael. Gordon Tucker translated the work into English as Heavenly Torah: As Refracted Through the Generations. The two Talmudic sages lived around 130 CE and disagreed on how to interpret the Bible. Rabbi Akiva won out, and Rashi, Nachmanides, and most ancient Bible commentators as well as most Midrashim and most rabbinical sermons today follow his view. Others, such as Rashi’s grandson Rashbam, ibn Ezra, and Maimonides interpret the Torah along the lines of Rabbi Ishmael. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
Does the Torah speak in divine or human language? Read More »
Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish Religion
With prayers, reflections and songs, first from her home synagogue, Chabad of Poway, and later from around the world, Jews memorialized Lori Gilbert Kaye, who was slain one year ago during a gunman’s attack that also wounded Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein and two congregants, Almog Peretz and his elementary-school-aged niece Noya Dahan. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]
Global memorials for Poway’s Lori Gilbert Kaye Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, San Diego County, Travel and FoodStreaming movies tell about Israel’s independence in 1948.
Other items in today’s column include: *Jewish community coronavirus news *Yom HaZikaron/ Yom Ha’Atzma’ut *Political bytes *Recommended reading *In memoriam By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO — Jewish community members are celebrating the recovery from cancer of Michael Jeser, the executive director of the Jewish Federation of San Diego County. On April 23, he
San Diegans celebrate Michael Jeser’s cancer recovery Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Lifestyles, Middle East, Obituaries & memorials, San Diego County, Travel and Food
Last week, we observed Yom HaShoah—Holocaust Memorial Day — which corresponds to the start of the famous Warsaw Ghetto uprising. On April 19, 1943, the Jews fought back and attempted to prevent the Nazis from deporting them to the concentration camps. This holiday helped the Jews realize that they cannot passively accept their fate. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]
Lessons from the Warsaw Ghetto uprising Read More »
International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi
This week we read a double portion. The first portion is called Tazria, which means ‘She will cause to grow,’ and the second portion is called Metzora, which means a person afflicted with (the disease) Tza’rat. [Rabbi Yeruchem Eilfort]
A Word of Torah: The diseases of gossip, evil speech Read More »
Jewish Religion, Yeruchem Eilfort-Rabbi