Gordon Haber writes about religion and culture in addition to editing the CANVAS Compendium, a newsletter on Jewish arts and culture. He does not live in Brooklyn.
Gordon Haber
By Gordon Haber
-
Culture Jewlicious: Celebration of Jewish Cool
I’ve just spent my entire weekend at the sixth annual Jewlicious Festival in Long Beach, Calif., and I’m exhausted. Between sundown Friday and Sunday afternoon, I have eaten Jewish food, exercised with a Jewish boxer, laughed at Jewish comics and listened to Jewish music. I have talked about the Jewish past and argued about the…
-
Culture Colonies and Conversion
The Unconverted Self: Jews, Indians, and the Identity of Christian Europe By Jonathan Boyarin University of Chicago Press, 208 pages, $32.50. Some years ago, on a lovely fall morning, I was walking across the Columbia University campus when I saw a group of students unfurl a huge banner that announced “Columbus=Hitler.” Since, at the time,…
-
Culture God Lives, but Not in Cambridge
36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction By Rebecca Newberger Goldstein Random House 416 pages, $27.95. Here is an ambitious novel about big ideas — love, sex, religion — that nevertheless faces these issues with irony and humor. A novel sprinkled with Yiddish and Hebrew, and populated mostly by secular Jews…
-
Fast Forward Another Partial Success for Jewish Boxing
In recent weeks we’ve had the prospect of watching not one but two undefeated, observant Jewish boxers in title fights. On November 14th in Las Vegas, Yuri Foreman won the WBA super welterweight championship by unanimous decision. Earlier tonight in Newcastle, England, Dimitry Salita fought Amir Khan for the WBA light welterweight belt, with a…
-
Life Foreman-Pacquiao???
Will Yuri Foreman fight Manny Pacquaio? A few weeks ago the idea would have seemed ridiculous, but now it seems like it might just happen. Pacquaio’s next fight is supposed to be against Floyd Mayweather, which would put two of the greatest fighters alive together in the ring. But their promoters (Bob Arum of Top…
-
Israel News Top Moments in Madoff Pop Culture
Bernard Madoff caused a lot of heartache with his titanic Ponzi scheme. It seems only natural that a scandal of this magnitude would creep into the larger culture. After considerable mental strain, the Forward has dug up some notable examples. Determining their taste, or lack thereof, is up to you. 1. The “Seinfeld” reunion on…
-
News Yuri Foreman: Future Rabbi, Present World Champion
Boxing is a sport for immigrants, for tough young men looking to make a living. Which is why it used to be a sport for American Jews. Before World War II, there were a number of superior Jewish fighters, like Benny Leonard, Barney Ross and Maxie Rosenbloom. But these days, the Jews in boxing tend…
-
Fast Forward Israeli Trainee Rabbi Wins World Boxing Title
On Saturday, November 14, Yuri Foreman, 29, walked from his hotel to the MGM Grand Garden Arena to avoid breaking the Sabbath. After sundown, Foreman beat three-time world champion Daniel Santos for the WBA Super Welterweight title. Foreman, a Brooklynite, Israeli citizen and rabbi-in-training, was the underdog against Santos, a southpaw with a longer reach….
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Why the Antisemitism Awareness Act now has a religious liberty clause to protect ‘Jews killed Jesus’ statements
- 2
News School Israel trip turns ‘terrifying’ for LA students attacked by Israeli teens
- 3
Fast Forward The invitation said, ‘No Jews.’ The response from campus officials, at least, was real.
- 4
Culture Cardinals are Catholic not Jewish — so why do they all wear yarmulkes?
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward Campus encampments return one year later, and pro-Palestinian protests spark 15 arrests
-
Fast Forward Israeli left-wing group suspended at University of Haifa after protesting the war in Gaza
-
Fast Forward Jordanian national in Florida sentenced to 6 years for targeting businesses he believed supported Israel
-
Fast Forward A ‘Golden Dome for America,’ inspired by Israel, is part of Trump’s 2026 budget request
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
