WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Network of Reform Judiasm joined a delegation of religious leaders on Thursday, June 5, in meeting with Sudan’s Ambassador to the U.S., Maowia Khalid. This meeting comes on the heels of a Sudanese court’s sentencing of Meriam Ibrahim to death for allegedly converting to
By Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D. SAN DIEGO — I’ve decided to tackle a topic that may, and should, stir more than a little discomfort. Jewish disunity. Jewish disrespect. The Rambam writes “It is a mitzvah for every Jew to love every other Jew as himself… Therefore a person must praise his fellow Jew and be
Jewish unity doesn’t require unanimity Read More »
Jewish Religion, Michael MantellTzippora Price, Mother in Action: Exploring the Inner World of Motherhood, Menucha Publishers, ISBN 97816145130-7, 133 pages. By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — First of all, the title is a misnomer, as the first part of the book is concerned with the author’s personal journey from college student in the USA to devout Jewess
‘Motherhood’ book unappealing for secular readers Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Jewish Religion, Science, Medicine, & EducationSAN DIEGO (SDJW) — The U-T’s James Hebert went to New York City for the Tony Awards ceremony, in which a number of Jews were honored. Robert L. Freedman won for the best script (book) in A Gentlemen’s Guide to Love and Murder, which was refined by former Old Globe resident artistic director Darko Tresnjak.
Jews in the San Diego News: June 9, 2014 Read More »
Jewish Religion, San Diego County
NEW YORK (WJC) – Leaders of the World Jewish Congress (WJC) on Sunday condemned remarks made by the founder and long-time leader of the French National Front (FN) party, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who in video had remarked about Jewish singer Patrick Bruel: “We do an oven load next time” (“On fera une fournée la prochaine
Lauder: Le Pen’s Holocaust slur ‘sickening’ Read More »
International
By Aryeh Savir JERUSALEM (TNA) — In an unprecedented incident, the Palestinian Authority has arrested four anti-Israel BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) activists in Ramallah. The four, Zeid Shuaibi, Abdel Jawad Hamayel, Fadi Quran and Fajr Harb, were arrested about two weeks ago on charges of “provoking riots and the breach of public tranquility.” The
4 BDS advocates arrested in Ramallah Read More »
Middle EastBy Anav Silverman JERUSALEM — Hamas government spokesman in Gaza, Ihab al-Ghussein, stated that Mahmoud Abbas was deceiving the Americans in public statements calling for peace with Israel. In a Facebook post on June 8, al-Ghussein wrote that the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, is “tricking” the Americans. “When I go out and say that the
Hamas: Abbas doesn’t really want peace Read More »
Middle East
SUMMIT, New Jersey (Press Release)– “Palestinians must choose between peace with Israel as a Jewish state and a marriage with Hamas, a terrorist organization,” Senator Robert Menendez declared at the AJC New Jersey Region Annual Meeting. The “marriage will have severe consequences.” The agreement between the Palestinian Authority, led by Mahmoud Abbas, and Hamas to
Menendez plans review of U.S. aid to Palestinians Read More »
Middle East, USAPope Francis, Peres, Abbas pray for peace in Vatican City (JNS.org) Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas joined Pope Francis to pray for peace in Vatican City on Sunday. “Peacemaking calls for courage, much more so than warfare,” Pope Francis said. “It calls for the courage to say yes to encounter
JNS news briefs: June 9, 2014 Read More »
International, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — It looks like everyone is angry, but that is only the top layer. Only a bit deeper down, the status quo–including everybody else’s anger–looks pretty good from all the competing perspectives. Israelis are angry with Palestinians for creating an alliance with Hamas, and angry with Americans and Europeans for recognizing
Diving into the sub- surface of Middle Eastern politics Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By Jeffrey F. Barken/JNS.org TEL AVIV (JNS) — Janet Tauro and Varda Kahanovich made a deal upon which their lives depend. Tauro, a foreign worker from Mumbai, provides Kahanovich, a 90-year-old Israeli woman living on Kibbutz Maagan Michael, warm and devoted care. In return, Kahanovich hopes to live a long and happy life, well beyond
Foreign caretakers for Israeli elderly quite common Read More »
Middle East, Science, Medicine, & EducationBy Rabbi Ben Kamin ENCINITAS, California — Because we are so crushingly interconnected, wired, opinionated, and free, our national tendency to bewail and even condemn ourselves sometimes weighs us down with self-flagellation and remorse and some sense that we are somehow finished as a civilization. Many folks transfer this national melancholy onto the shoulders of
Hey Americans, stop beating yourselves up! Read More »
USA
VATICAN CITY (VNS)–Pope Francis joined in prayer with Israel’s President Shimon Peres and the Palestine Authority’s Presidentg Mahmoud Abbas. Here, as provided by the Vatican, are the comments made by each of the leaders on Sunday June 8: Pope Francis — Distinguished Presidents, I greet you with immense joy and I wish to offer you,
The prayers of Pope Francis, Peres, Abbas Read More »
International, Middle East
By Maayan Jaffe/JNS.org Many questions surrounded the future of the Chabad-Lubavitch branch of Hasidism after the death of its seventh and final leader—“the Rebbe,” Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson—on June 12, 1994. Schneerson had no children, and no successor was named. But 20 years later, Chabad is not only alive and well, but increasingly receiving the
Other movements emulating Chabad’s outreach Read More »
Jewish Religion