Opinion

Appreciation for the people and institutions of the Jewish community, especially in times of stress

Last night, after a very long and stressful day, I had the honor of leading a Rosh Chodesh session at my synagogue, one of several events happening across our Jewish community last night. There were nearly 50 women there to set intentions for the month ahead, explore themes of renewal and of hope, and to express gratitude for the blessings in their lives. [Heidi Gantwerk]

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Jewish Religion, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Opinion: United Jewish community needs to call for full funding of National Security Grant Program

Clearly, we all must be as well-prepared as Temple Israel was for such an attack, which is why we encourage everyone to call on Congress to increase funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP), which provides essential security grants for synagogues and Jewish institutions. [Halie Soifer]

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Antisemitism, Jewish Religion, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Playing Shylock, playing Saul Rubinek: It’s all in the telling

Rubinek’s scheduled performance on March 25 at The Museum of Jewish Heritage in Lower Manhattan should prove memorable. He will read from All in the Telling; show clips from his documentary film, So Many Miracles, about his 1986 trip with his parents to Poland to reunite with the farmers who hid them for two and a half years during the Holocaust; and hold a discussion with Professor Annette Insdorf, who teaches film at Columbia. [Susie Rosenbluth)

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Antisemitism, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Holocaust, International, Jewish History, News Media, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Why are the media and mob so anti-Israel? 

That there is a huge bias against Israel is beyond argument. It is backed by data but also obvious: a Western style democracy with full rule of law is painted as a “genocide” state by the great uneducated, and often unwashed, from the campus to street demos, to riots and in all types of media. [David Anderson]

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International, Israel, Jewish History, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

The global resurgence of the ‘Jewish Question’

After World War II, it seemed that an answer to the Jewish question had been found: the creation of the State of Israel and the positive attitude of Western civilization towards the Jewish people in its diaspora. [Alex Gordon]

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Alex Gordon, Antisemitism, Holocaust, International, Israel, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Opinion, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Shakespeare, Hasidic sage Zusya, shared belief in unique purpose of each human being

Shakespeare and Rabbi Zusya lived more than a century apart and in very different worlds, yet together they illuminate a deeply Jewish idea: tafkid, the belief that each soul enters the world with a particular purpose. [Betzy Lynch]

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Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Opinion, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Federation mission to India ‘refreshing’ and broadening

For two weeks, we were transported into a place more “foreign” than anywhere else I have visited, yet every encounter was positive, welcoming, and gracious. Through our modern Western lens, we kept asking about antisemitism, historically or today. It simply isn’t there, and I cannot express how refreshing that was to hear. [Heidi Gantwerk]

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Antisemitism, Heidi Gantwerk, International, Israel, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Opinion, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Gubernatorial debate ignores important context for antisemitism

Today much of the hostility Jews, especially Jewish students on campuses, encounter is expressed through the language of anti-Zionism. Students are frequently targeted not simply as Jews but as “Zionists,” and the protests and slogans surrounding Israel have become one of the primary ways hostility toward Jewish identity now appears on campuses and in public life. A student may not be called a “dirty Jew,” but a “dirty Zionist.” The rhetoric has changed. The hostility has not. [Karen Klein]

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California, Israel, Jewish Religion, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Purim story recalled in Israeli-U.S. fight against Iran

ust today, Israelis in the center of the country had to walk or run to safe rooms four or five times (I can’t keep track). Also today in the supermarket, we had to crowd into a safety area not once but twice. Nearly all Israelis are staying at home or close to it. [Steve Kramer]

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International, Israel, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Steve Kramer, USA

Thoughts of an Israeli retiree as the war with Iran intensifies

And so, we spent the day hovering between our chilly basement shelter and our comfortable sitting-room as alarms rang out from our phones, radios and TV sets, as well as outside in the public arena. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Jewish History, Middle East, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA