Israel's chief rabbi expresses concern over possible sainthood for Pope Pius XII

JERUSALEM (WJC) — Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger has said that Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to proceed with the beatification of war-time Pope Pius XII made it difficult to continue with Catholic-Jewish interfaith dialogue. However, Metzger emphasized that the Israeli Chief Rabbinate would not cut off relations with the Vatican. On Saturday, Pope Benedict XVI

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Middle East

NCJW denounces Senate health care restrictions on abortion coverage

WASHINGTON, DC (Press Release) — The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) on Tuesday denounced the provision in the Senate health reform bill that would deprive millions of women of access to abortion and impose onerous restrictions on millions more. NCJW President Nancy Ratzan released the following statement: “The ongoing war against women’s ability to exercise their

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USA

Lloyds TSB "Bank pays $217 million fine for helping Iran circumvent U.S. trade laws

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Tuesday announced a $217 million settlement with Lloyds TSB Bank, plc (Lloyds), concerning the bank’s intentional manipulation and deletion of information about U.S. sanctioned parties in wire transfer instructions routed through third-party banks located in the United

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USA

U.S. Treasury Department freezes assets of Iraqi insurgent group

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Tuesday designated the Iraq-based insurgent group Jaysh Rijal al-Tariq al-Naqshabandi (JRTN) for threatening the peace and stabilization efforts in Iraq. JRTN has committed, directed, supported, or posed a significant risk of committing acts of violence against Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces and was

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USA

Reform movement expresses mixed reactions over Health Care bill

WASHINGTON, D.C., (Press Release)– In response to the Senate’s early morning procedural vote on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Mark Pelavin, Associate Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, issued the following statement: We are pleased to see the Senate’s vote to move forward with crucial health insurance reform legislation that

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USA

Wyden calls for action to shut off flow of money from Saudi Arabia and other countries to Taliban

 WASHINGTON, D.C (Press Release)–As the United States prepares to ramp up troop levels in Afghanistan and bring that war to a close, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (Democrat, Oregon) called on Richard C. Holbrooke, Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, to turn attention to the illicit funding streams that are propping up the Taliban’s ability to

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Travel and Food

Shonda file: Spinka Rebbe Naftali Tzi Weisz sentenced to two years in prison for tax evasion

LOS ANGELES (Press Release)– The Grand Rabbi of Spinka, a religious group within Orthodox Judaism, was sentenced Monday morning to two years in federal prison for orchestrating a tax evasion scheme that prosecutors called “an astonishingly complex and sinister enterprise.” Grand Rabbi Naftali Tzi Weisz, 61, of Brooklyn, New York, pleaded guilty last summer to a

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Middle East, USA

Jimmy Carter says an 'Al Het' if any of his words stigmatized Israel

ATLANTA (WJC)–Former US President Jimmy Carter has asked the Jewish community for forgiveness for any offense he may have caused when criticizing Israel. In a letter release by the news agency JTA, Carter sent season’s greeting and wished peace between Israel and its neighbors. He concluded: “We must recognize Israel’s achievements under difficult circumstances, even

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Middle East, USA

Auschwitz sign thieves apolitical, may have been commissioned by collector

KRAKOW, Poland (WJC)–Polish police have interrogated the five professional thieves who stole the infamous ‘Arbeit macht frei’ sign from the entrance of the former Nazi death camp in Auschwitz. According to rumors, a foreign collector might have commissioned the gang to steal the wrought-iron sign which was recovered 72 hours after being stolen from the

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Travel and Food

WJC provides background on its doubts about Pius XII sainthood

VATICAN CITY (WJC)–Pope Benedict XVI has moved his controversial war-time predecessor, Pius XII, a step closer to sainthood, declaring that Pius had displayed “heroic virtues” throughout his life and thus been a Christian worthy of imitation. Pius was one of 17 people approved by Benedict on Saturday in a list that also includes Pope John

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Middle East

This Jewish single dad wonders what to do on Christmas Eve

By Gary Rotto SAN DIEGO-I did my neighborly duty and helped my neighbors celebrate Christmas on Sunday night.  For our immediate neighborhood, we have an annual “Holiday Lights” judging party, in which families get together for an hour, roam the neighborhood together and judge the light displays.  Yes, holiday lights as several neighbors tried to

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Travel and Food