By Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — I’m still among those who don’t know if the Iran deal is as bad as many in Israel say it is or better than its alternatives, which retired big-wigs in the Israeli defense establishment seem to suggest. But it’s becoming increasingly clear that Prime Minister Netanyahu’s campaign against the
Netanyahu must combat the ayatollahs within Read More »
Middle EastBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — It’s not right and fair to engage in ‘old-timer’ nostalgia at any time, I know, but in view of recent events I can’t help comparing Israel as it was fifty years ago, when I first came to live here, and today. Israel today is, if anything, even more vibrant, productive
Bitter division among Jews threatens Israel Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Israel has been wracked by violence, conscience, and not a little hypocrisy in recent days. Assailants, widely thought to be extremist Jews, firebombed a Palestinian home in a West Bank village, killing a year-old child and severely injuring other family members. An ultra-Orthodox Jew, recently released from prison for a similar
2 Jewish terror attacks roil Israel, U.N. Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Rabbi Ben Kamin ENCINITAS, California — He grew up in New Jersey being bullied as a Jew and retains little religious identification. His last name was Leibowitz but he changed it to his middle name, Stuart, and was more or less estranged from his Slavic father. The strain was driven by ethnic complexities. Jon Stewart
Stewart railed with honesty against hypocrisy Read More »
USAThe Power of Babel: The Natural History of Language by John McWhorter, Times Books, 2002 By Sheila Orysiek SAN DIEGO — From the moment of birth a child is likely to be surrounded by the sound of human voices. It doesn’t take long for the child to decode what at first may seem like chaotic
From the Jewish Library: ‘The Power of Babel’ Read More »
Travel and FoodBy Michael R. Mantell, PhD SAN DIEGO — I recently went on the Rabbinical Assembly website and found 15 prayerbooks. Prayerbooks. Fifteen of them. Who needs fifteen different prayerbooks? I guess the Rabbinical Assembly, the international association of Conservative/Masorti rabbis believes we, the members of Conservative congregations worldwide, need them. But fifteen? Seriously? This got me
Setting goals for our prayers Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell
Levi Koenig: A Contemporary King Lear by Dorothea Shefer-Vanson © 2015, ISBN-14: 978-1511909761; 215 pages. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO – As their father weakens in body, if not in mind, three daughters do what they can to aid him; all the while resenting each other for not taking up enough of the burden.
‘Levi Koenig:’ 3 daughters and a dying father Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Dorothea Shefer-VansonBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — I’d like to take back everything negative that I’ve written about President Reuven Rivlin. Though I had repeatedly expressed my admiration for his pronouncements since he became president on behalf of Israel’s Arab citizens, I was distressed by his seeming discrimination against exponents of non-Orthodox Judaism. He seems to
Rivlin, in wake of deaths, urges soul- searching Read More »
Middle EastI Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors by Ann Marie Fleming, National Film Board of Canada
Film: I Was A Child of Holocaust Survivors Read More »
International, Jewish HistoryBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–Wisdom and justice are elusive topics, with numerous issues on their borders. Israel presents the topics of settlements and Jonathan Pollard. Settlement is either the curse of post-1967 Israel, the fulfillment of God’s promise, an appropriate response to Arab rejections, and/or a way to get more of contested real estate. Americans have
Weighing the morality of settlements, Pollard case Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Joe Spier CALGARY, Alberta, Canada — During the Second World War as the Nazis stormed across Europe, they systematically looted millions of priceless paintings, sculptures and other cultural artifacts from museums, including their own, churches, libraries and private collections, mostly Jewish. The monetary value ran into the billions, but the cultural loss was incalculable. It
The story of the youngest of the Monuments Men Read More »
International, Jewish History
SAN DIEGO (SDJW) – During the month of July, San Diego Jewish World was privileged to publish works by the following writers and photographers. We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you and publicly express our appreciation. To access works by these contributors on San Diego Jewish World, type or copy their name
SDJW thanks its July 2015 contributors Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Eileen Wingard, Eric George Tauber, Eva Trieger, Fred Reiss, EdD, Ira Sharkansky, Lawrence Baron, Lloyd Levy, Mark D. Zimmerman, Michael Ordman, Mimi Pollack, Natasha Josefowitz, Sheryl Rowling, Shor M. Masori, Shoshana Bryen, Steve Kramer