Below are the names of writers who are currently active. For others, living and deceased, please type their name into the search box above the masthead on our home page, www.sdjewishworld.com
By Steve Kramer KFAR SABA, Israel — There’s been a lot of mayhem lately at the Temple Mount (the summit of Mount Moriah) in Jerusalem, which is a magnet for religious Jews, especially during Passover. Because this year Passover, Easter, and the Muslim holiday of Ramadan coincided, more violence than usual has resulted. The current
Jerusalem’s Temple Mount: The Epicenter of Violence Read More »
Middle East, Opinion, Steve Kramer
By Alex Gordon, Ph.D HAIFA, Israel — Many years ago, I was in the German city of Cologne and went to a station restaurant for lunch. I was surprised when I saw “Chicken Kiev-style” on the menu. I was surprised because I was born and raised in Kiev, and I knew nothing about Chicken Kiev-style.
Confessions of a Foreign Intelligence Agent’s Son Read More »
Alex Gordon, Holocaust, International, Opinion
(To the tune of “Lady Madonna”) By Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — Stare Decisis, its time has expired. With the three judges Donald Trump hired. Who needs Roe when you are with child? Carry it to term if you’ve been defiled. Six weeks is too much time to tarry. Informers can charge you with
Satire: Stare Decision Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
Lazard, a social worker employed by the County of San Diego to determine financial and residential eligibility for cradle-to-21-year-old residents with major disabilities, says he is happiest when he gets to sing, particularly Jewish prayer songs. Through his tutoring of Ruth Sax, he got to know other Jewish residents of Paradise Village, and before long he was asked to officiate at the monthly Shabbat service. He met with Paradise Village’s Chaplain, Harry Bennett, before accepting the volunteer gig. Services are held in the non-denominational chapel, which has a stained-glass window bearing a picture of a dove. [Donald H. Harrison]
Social Worker Serves as a Lay Rabbi for Elderly Residents of Paradise Village Read More »
California, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA
My son and I got a chance to see the opening night performance. As with every other show I’ve seen at the Civic Theatre, we ran into people that I knew as soon as we walked in. This time it was Bar Mitzvah planner Lydia Krasner and her husband Ron. I am not a “Renthead,” having never seen the musical in the quarter century between the time it started touring at the La Jolla Playhouse to this final touring performance. It was fortunate that we ran into Lydia and Krasner, because Lydia is really knowledgeable about the show and was able to explain some of the plot points that we found confusing. [Sandi Masori]
New to ‘Rent,’ I Was Glad Someone Was There to Explain Read More »
Sandi Masori, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
This tale for tots conflates the light of Shabbat candles with other pleasant and helpful lights that they might encounter. These include a flashlight helping people to find their way; lanterns at an evening picnic; a lighthouse that aids sailors; the moon and stars; fireflies; and a soft nightlight in a child’s room. [Donald H. Harrison]
Book for Toddlers Tells of the Lights of Shabbat Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion
By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — From Broken Glass: My Story of Finding Hope in Hitler’s Death Camps to Inspire a New Generation, by Steve Ross, is truly an inspiring story. Interspersed with the author’s vivid recollections of being incarcerated from the age of 8 in a succession of concentration camps are accounts of
Author’s Vivid Accounts Range From Nazi Death Camps to Boston’s Worst Neighborhoods Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Holocaust, International, USA
By Sam Ben-Meir NEW YORK — The Russian-born artist Vasily Kandinsky (1866-1944) was one of the early pioneers in the field of abstract painting – along with Kazimir Malevich, Piet Mondrian, and Hilma af Klint, among others. Through September 5, New York’s Guggenheim Museum is hosting “Around the Circle,” an immense retrospective of this extraordinarily
The Art of Transformation: Vasily Kandinsky at the Guggenheim Read More »
International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Sam Ben-Meir, USA
Hello, I think I’ve been transported back to 1955, when I was 10 years old. That’s not really my late mother calling, but it’s possible that author Catherine Newman has channeled her and other parents who tried to teach my generation the essence of being a good person, a mensch. [Donald H. Harrison]
A Jewish Book of Practical Tips for Pre-Teens Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison
By Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — On the first day of Passover, I left a store and entered my car only to look up and spot two bizarre signs on the wall — one warning of death in “hell-fire” for anyone who kills a son of Islam and the second crediting Muslims for building the
Israeli Police Vs. Circular Logic Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Middle East, Opinion
From PJ Library comes two Passover-related books suitable for reading to children. Meet the Matzah is the kind of silly story that children will giggle over. In this case, different kinds of breads and matzah have been anthropomorphized as students in a classroom where they learn about all kinds of holidays and the breads that are served. For example, one might eat naan during the Hindu festival of Diwali and tortillas on the Mexican holiday of Dia de los Muertos. [Donald H. Harrison]
PJ Library Serves Up Stories About Passover and Mimouna Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, International, Jewish Religion, Middle East
Almost all arguments about Israel revolve around one or more of the following themes: security, collective identity, freedom, and territory. Authors Gringras and Sterne help us to conceptualize these arguments with a series of analogies. They challenge us to argue, in the classic sense of the word, about right and wrong in the hope that we may learn from each other. Arguments are different from fights; they are mental exercises, not physical, and they are laid out methodically, with each side trying to educate the other using such tools as logic and empathy. [Donald H. Harrison]
Reframing the Arguments in Israel and the Palestinian Authority Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & EducationBy Laurie Baron SAN DIEGO — Preface: Russian Jews revere me, but I worry that their traditional Seder might evoke analogies between the unjustly vilified Pharaoh and my benign leadership. To avert this, I have supplied them with a Haggadah from his perspective to guide their Seders. Seder means order, and they are ordered to
Pharoah’s Seder by Vladimir Putin Read More »
Lawrence Baron, Trivia, Humor & Satire
The International House of Pancakes at the Bay Plaza Shopping Center in National City was built in conformance with the shopping center’s architectural guidelines, rather than in IHOP’s usual configuration. However, it still has a trademark blue roof, and its menu is fairly typical of some 1,500 other establishments in the family restaurant chain created by two Jewish brothers. Al Lapin Jr. and Jerry Lapin started IHOP in 1958 in the tony San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Toluca Lake. [Donald H. Harrison]
Jewish Brothers Al Lapin Jr. and Jerry Lapin Founded IHOP Chain Read More »
Business & Finance, California, Donald H. Harrison, San Diego County, Travel and Food, USA