Scribe, the Forward’s curated contributor network, is a place for showcasing personal experiences and perspective from across our Jewish communities. Here you will find a wide array of reflections on Jewish issues, life-cycle events, spirituality, culture and more.
Community
-
You say matzah — and matzo and matzuh and matzee and more
Readers respond to our editor-in-chief’s column about a Passover copy-editing conundrum
-
Why Jews Should Oppose David Friedman
The US ambassador to Israel will represent the most powerful country on earth in one of the most volatile regions in the world. The position demands experience, caution and, perhaps most importantly, the ability to navigate high-stakes conversations in a respectful and productive manner. The ambassador must be able to work with those with whom…
-
What Breaking Bad Can Teach Us About Personal Ethics
During an interminable layover on a recent trip I downloaded the first episode of the hit-show Breaking Bad to pass the time. The premise – and I’m not giving anything away here – is that Mr. White, a chemistry teacher, receives a terminal cancer diagnosis. He then uses his knowledge of chemistry to make methamphetamines…
The Latest
-
Unsafe Water Kills More People Than War. Meet The Israeli Helping To Change That.
“Unsafe water kills more people than war.” When I first heard this statement, I was caught off guard. In 2017, really? I come from Israel, a country troubled by both lack of water and war, and somehow I had never heard this. How could this be? Hundreds and millions of people live in Africa without…
-
Building A Diverse Coalition? A Trip To Israel Could Help.
“To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.” — Tony Robbins This January, a group of student leaders from New York University departed on a flight bound for Israel. Together, they represented more…
-
No Tevye In Whitewashed Anatevka
The wooden houses with their straw roofs, their low beams, and crooked steps, solid wooden churches of dark wood with curved domes and cupolas, creaky old chicken coops and mud paths seemed both distant and familiar. At any moment one expects Tevye to appear from behind a corner nudging his horse, teasing his wife, or…
-
Playing In The Shadow Of Hitler
As an original member of the band Twisted Sister, I have performed in almost 9,000 shows around the world. But the story of the craziest, historic and most emotionally affecting show I’ve ever played happened on September 30th, 1983 in Nuremberg, Germany — in Zeppelin field, the site of Hitler’s Nuremberg rallies. We were a…
-
An Everything Bagel Fit For Our Times
More at Edsteinink.
-
Is Our Discourse Fit For Jews?
“Although the House of Shammai and the House of Hillel disagreed, the House of Shammai did not, nevertheless, abstain from marrying women of the House of Hillel, nor did the House of Hillel refrain from marrying those of the House of Shammai. This is to show you that they showed love and friendship towards one…
-
Do Yourself A Favor: Unplug This Shabbat.
Isn’t it time we turn off our devices and focus on what matters most in our lives? Leading up to the election, we were all on our screens more than normal, getting pinged and buzzed at every new development… and we tolerated this way of life, thinking when the election happened in November that it…
-
Ben’s Deli: A Case Of Unjustified Condemnation
Headlines blared in the days following the February 16 “Day Without Immigrants” protest. News reports condemned companies that fired their workers because they had joined the national protest, which was designed to convey the importance of immigrants in American life. “Dozens fired after ‘A Day Without Immigrants’ protest,” UPI reported the next day, levying charges…
-
The Westboro Challenge
When fringe groups seek to challenge our faith, how should we respond? Should we engage — or walk away? The fundamentalist group Westboro Baptist appeared right on time across the street from the modern Orthodox school where my older daughter graduated. And I don’t want to disappoint anyone, but I did not throw eggs. Demonstrators…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Unarmed man who tackled Bondi Beach Hanukkah attacker identified as Ahmed al-Ahmed
- 2
Fast Forward First Puka Nacua, now Mookie Betts: Why do sports stars keep getting antisemitic around a Jewish streamer?
- 3
Fast Forward After MIT professor’s killing, Jewish influencers spread unverified antisemitism claim
- 4
Opinion I grew up believing Australia was the best place to be Jewish. This Hanukkah shooting forces a reckoning I do not want.
In Case You Missed It
-
Opinion When my children decorate for Hanukkah, I don’t just see pride. I see pluralism in action.
-
Fast Forward ‘The most Australian name’: Matilda, the youngest victim of the Bondi Beach attack, embodies a nation’s grief
-
Fast Forward A Wider Bridge, a pro-Israel advocate in LGBTQ spaces, is shutting down
-
Yiddish פֿאַר וואָס הערט מען ניט וועגן דעם גלעצנדיקן וווּקס פֿון דער ישׂראל־בערזע? Why aren’t we hearing about the dramatic growth of the Israeli stock market?
וואָלט דער אָפּרוף געווען אַנדערש, ווען דער ציל פֿון די טעראָריסטן וואָלט ניט געווען ייִדן, נאָר אַן אַנדער גרופּע?
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
