Parsha Vayeshev: Life is How We Interpret It

The Torah is not a book of fairy tales in which righteous people live peacefully ever after. The Torah is a book about real life, not life as we wish it to be, but life as we experience it: unpredictable, demanding, confusing, and yet always filled with the possibility of growth. It’s telling us psychology. It’s telling us the story of us. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D.]

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Jewish Religion, Michael Mantell, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Our Shtetl: Alternative Latke Recipes

I make a latke variation with just potatoes, onions, and garlic. I shred potatoes, zucchinis, and carrots. I use powdered onion and garlic powder, faux cheese, and fry in olive oil. It probably still makes the same mess of oil splatters as the traditional latkes. [Cailin Acosta]

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Cailin Acosta, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Obituaries & memorials, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food

Jewish Political Briefing: Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said her country’s failure to deliver an agreed amount of water to Texas is not because of ill will, but because of “the amount of water there is and the amount of water that can be taken by pipeline.” [Donald H. Harrison]

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Antisemitism, California, Donald H. Harrison, International, Israel, Jewish Celebrities, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA

Musicians of Diverse Ethnic Backgrounds Perform Superbly at SDSO Concert

The San Diego Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Singapore-born guest conductor,  Kahchun Wong, opened the December 7 concert with a work, subito con forza (suddenly with force), by the Chinese composer,  Unsuk Chin, inspired by Beethoven’s 250 Birthday. [Eileen Wingard]

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Eileen Wingard, International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Jewish Political Briefing: Monday, Dec. 8, 2025

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene: Since I’ve been a member of Congress, we’ve had several resolutions that constantly denounce antisemitism. I’ve already voted denouncing antisemitism many times before. It becomes an exercise that they force on Congress, and I simply got tired of it. [Answering Lesley Stahl on ’60 Minutes.’

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Antisemitism, California, Donald H. Harrison, International, Israel, News Media, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Seven Stations on a Path to Jewish Wisdom

Rabbi Shira Milgrom has served as spiritual leader of Congregation Kol Ami in White Plains, New York, for 37 years and edited the widely used Reform prayerbook Mishkan T’filah. She is also the daughter of Jacob Milgrom, the towering 20th-century biblical scholar and author of the monumental Anchor Bible commentary on Leviticus—a man I was privileged to know personally and whose rigorous, humane scholarship continues to shape Jewish thought. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Jewish Religion, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Staff and Bylined Contributors