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
I am looking for my replacement as publisher and editor, someone who is dedicated to covering San Diego’s Jewish community and building upon this publication’s record of presenting many points of view about the issues facing our community. [Donald H. Harrison]
2nd Notice: SDJW Publisher Seeks His Successor Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, News Media, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors
The two centuries were marked by Judean hatred toward Rome due to its conquest and control of Judea in 63 BCE. There were three pivotal violent rebellions against Rome: the Great Revolt of 66 to 74 CE, which resulted, among other calamities, in the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE; the Diaspora Revolt of 116 CE; and the Bar Kokhba Revolt of 132 to 136 CE. There were also many more minor battles before and sandwiched within these three. In each struggle between Judeans and Rome, thousands of Judeans fought alongside the Romans against their brothers. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]
A Jewish War that Lasted Two Centuries Read More »
Antisemitism, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Israel, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Each year, as we return to the opening words of the Torah, we are invited to begin again, not merely to reread familiar stories, but to renew our vision, our understanding, and our inner world. Bereishit is not only about the creation of the universe; it’s about the creation of the self, of human consciousness, purpose, and moral responsibility. [Michael Mantell, Ph.D.}
Parsha Bereishit: Creation of the Universe, Reformation of Self Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell, Staff and Bylined Contributors
Hollywood screenwriter Gary Gilbert heard a story from David Weisberg about the missing stamp collection. Weisberg said it was told to his father, psychiatrist Paul Weisberg, by a firefighter patient whose wife was the daughter of an SS officer. [Donald H. Harrison]
Documentarians Probe Mystery of Missing Stamp Collection During Holocaust Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Holocaust, Jewish History, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
The piano concerto, Ephemerae, is divided into three movements, Bloom, Primal Forest, and Spice Bazaar. [Eileen Wingard]
Composer-in-Residence Jimmy Lopez’s Ephemerae Suggests the Aromas of Fragrances Read More »
Eileen Wingard, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors
And so a whole nation, and possibly a whole world, watched with bated breath and swelling hearts as returning hostages ran into the arms of their waiting mothers and fathers, embracing siblings, friends, and even in some exceptional cases their own young children. It was impossible not to be moved at the sight, and not to share in the joy and relief of all concerned. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]
Israel Mesmerized by Videos of Hostages Returning to Their Families Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Jewish History, News Media, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Technology, USA
The atmosphere around Simchat Torah is a bit different this year. The hostages have been released after two years in Hamas captivity, and families and people around the world watched their emotional return. [Cailin Acosta]
Simchat Torah and Beyond Read More »
Cailin Acosta, Israel, Jewish Religion, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors
The centerpiece of the exhibition is Ndiaye’s Tabaski III (1970), explicitly depicts the aftermath of ritual sacrifice. The ram’s body, twisted and half-abstracted, glistens in layers of crimson and ochre, its form dissolving into painterly matter. The flesh here is not symbolic—it is the subject, the drama, the philosophy. [Sam Ben-Meir]
Flesh and Sacrifice: Iba Ndiaye at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Read More »
International, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Sam Ben-Meir, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
Fear is a natural response to anything that threatens our safety or sense of security. And it doesn’t have to be as extreme as a life-threatening diagnosis. Fear can arise when we face financial hardships, lose or change jobs, end or deepen a relationship, or let our children follow their own paths rather than ours. In those moments, we can almost feel our illusions of control disintegrate as we step into unchartered territory. [Shayna Kaufmann]
Letting Faith Walk Beside Fear Read More »
Lifestyles, Science, Medicine, & Education, Shayna Kaufmann, Staff and Bylined Contributors
The truth of this moment does not belong to any one man or office. It belongs to the hostages themselves—to the quiet resilience that sustained them through hunger, darkness, and fear; to the families who refused to let the world forget; and to a nation that, even through its grief and anger, never stopped believing in the sanctity of life. [Shahar Masori]
OpEd: This Day Belongs to the Hostages and Their Persistent Families Read More »
Israel, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Opinion, Shahar Masori, Staff and Bylined Contributors
We have collectively been holding our breath, waiting for this moment. The images leave us speechless – filled with relief and joy at their return, burdened by the painful knowledge that their healing will be long and difficult, and grieving for the 28 who did not survive captivity. [Heidi Gantwerk]
Hostages are Free, Free at Last Read More »
Heidi Gantwerk, Israel, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Opinion, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
In 1914, Franck, together with Gustav Hertz, conducted an experiment that proved that atoms absorb energy only in specific discrete portions, quanta. This observation proved the correctness of quantum mechanics. Both scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1925. [Alex Gordon]
Jewish Biography: James Franck, German Physicist Read More »
Alex Gordon, International, Jewish History, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
What remains to be seen, above all else, is whether Hamas disarms. That is Point 6 in the plan. The Trump proposal to rebuild Gaza backs into the question of whether Hamas gives up its weapons. [Bruce S. Ticker]
What Assurances Are There that Hamas will Live up to Agreement? Read More »
Antisemitism, Bruce Ticker, International, Israel, Jewish History, News Media, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA
Zorn is assigned by his superiors at the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police to go undercover and, if possible, to thwart the plans of the mysterious leader of the American neo-Nazi movement, who goes by the pseudonym of Black Sun. [Donald H. Harrison]
Thriller Fiction: Neo-Nazis Plan Mass Casualty Event in Washington D.C. Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Israel, Staff and Bylined Contributors