Travel and Food

  By Dov Hartuv KIBBUTZ NAHAL OZ, Israel — When the young enthusiastic idealistic Jews left Eastern Europe during the first half of the twentieth century, they not only left behind their parents and families but also turned their backs on everything that represented their past as Jews of the diaspora. The majority of world

By David Amos SAN DIEGO – The earth, the sun, the planets and beyond. Such will be the theme of the next concert of the Tifereth Israel CommunityOrchestra in its programs of Tuesday, June 14, 7:30 p.m., and at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, the 19th. Both concerts will be held at the Cohen Social Hall

By Rabbi Ben Kamin SAN DIEGO–The very fact that writer and star Kristen Wiig, along with director Paul Feig, likely did not think about it makes their hit comedy Bridesmaids a resounding social statement.  The friendships, romantic entanglements, jealousies, and hilarities have to do with everything but one old stand-by: racial stereotypes. Continue reading on

  By Dov Hartuv KIBBUTZ NAHAL OZ, Israel –Knowing our past makes our future significant   I think most of us missed out on learning about our roots and family history when we never grasped the chance of speaking to our grandparents or great grandparents when we had the opportunity. It seems that we all

By David Amos SAN DIEGO–I am frequently asked about the different elements that come into play in the education and formation of a serious orchestral conductor. It is indeed a fascinating subject, many factors come into play and as in so many subjects about the arts, and there are wide differences of opinion. For sure,

By Rabbi Baruch Lederman SAN DIEGO — “I will ordain my blessing for you.  the land will yield sufficient crop.”  Leviticus 25:21    The Torah promises us that if we observe Hashem’s (G-d)  commandment to allow the land of Israel to rest every seven years and do not sow or harvest the land, Hashem will bless

By David Amos SAN DIEGO — A few months ago I wrote about the famous 1940 book by Oscar Levant, A Smattering of Ignorance. As you may know or have read, Levant was a pianist-composer in the mid-Twentieth Century; he was involved in both popular and very serious classical music, was a good friend of

By Sheila Orysiek  SAN DIEGO –City Ballet of San Diego closed its  season on May 1 at the Spreckels Theatre with a dynamic program.  Enigma by resident choreographer Elizabeth Wistrich received a Tommy Award when this work was first performed in 2000 and it is easy to see why.  This is a complete concept – entirely

By Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal SAN DIEGO — In the middle of Vayikra, the Book of Leviticus, with its long, detailed, and arcane descriptions of Israel’s ancient sacrificial rite, we are caught short by the appearance of parashat Kedoshim. Parashat Kedoshim speaks not of Priests, altars, and sacrifices, but of Godliness and holiness: “You shall be holy,