By Elana Maryles Sztokman
Kaya Stern-Kaufman is graduating from rabbinical school this spring, but she says she will not always be called “rabbi.” Instead, the 47-year-old mother of two will also use the title “
rabba,” making her the first woman to specifically choose this Hebrew feminized version of “rabbi” as a preferred moniker.
Read More
By Elana Maryles Sztokman
Kaya Stern-Kaufman is graduating from rabbinical school this spring, but she will not always be called a “rabbi.” Instead, the 47-year-old mother of two will also use the title “
rabba,” making her the first woman to specifically choose this Hebrew feminized version of “rabbi” as a preferred moniker.
Read More
By Elana Maryles Sztokman
Something has changed in Israeli politics. Yulia Shamalov-Berkovich found that out the hard way.Read More
By Elana Maryles Sztokman
Now that the euphoria that greeted the rape conviction of former Israeli president Moshe Katsav has started to subside, it is worthwhile to ask the question: Why was this such a big deal? Historically speaking, there are enough reasons to consider this a significant event: the worst crime for which an Israeli official has been tried, the first time an Israeli president has been found guilty of anything and the only time I can recall that a former head of state anywhere has been convicted of rape.Read More
By Elana Maryles Sztokman
In June 2006, the Supreme Court of Israel handed down one of the most important but barely publicized rulings in the history of the Jewish state. The decision to cancel the Law for the Privatization of Prisons halted a process that would have abdicated an unprecedented amount of state authority — that is, the correctional system — to private bodies. Remarkable in this story is not only how quietly the law nearly took effect, but also how the Supreme Court came to its conclusion. The decision was credited to a magazine, Eretz Acheret (“A Different Place”), in particular the April-May 2006 issue, titled, “Can the State abdicate its role as responsible for the correctional system?”
Read More
