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.
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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
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Prepent Day 17: How to Handle Stress
Tuesday 9/20/16 Elul 17 5776 Dear Stress, Today I met with a couple about to get married. In the middle of their busy professional lives, adding wedding planning is simply one more project that is driving them beyond the norm of urban urgency – they are really really stressed out. The guy just burst out…
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Was Eve Called ‘He’ in the Torah?
Translations of the Bible are never without controversy. In a few articles since 2008, and in a recent Op-Ed in The New York Times, “Is God Transgender?,” I have provided examples of grammatical gender-bending in the Torah – all hints, I believe, to the “dual-gendered” nature of God. I’ll have more to say about what…
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To Combat BDS, You Need to Understand Intersectionality
Over the last few years I have been asked countless times to explain why supporters of women’s and gay rights ally with an intolerant Palestinian Arab society in which misogyny and honor killings are commonplace. A place where homosexuality is still illegal, LGBT individuals are routinely abused, and hundreds of Palestinian Arabs risk their lives…
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Prepent Day 16: Cleaning Up My Act
Monday 9/19/16 Elul 16 5776 Dear Moths, I’m sorry for annihilating, not without satisfaction and a bit of pleasure, every single one of you that I could find. My recent Tineola bisselliella infestation, I am told, was not as bad as others, and yet enough damage has been done and you are no longer welcome…
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Prepent Day 15: I’m Late!
Sunday 9/18/16 Elul 15 5776 Dear Dr. C, Sometimes I feel like the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, running running muttering muttering “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” Im sitting in the back of a taxi, stuck in bad traffic, really really late to our scheduled appointment. I’m so sorry. No…
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Despite Fierce Protestors, New York City Council Overwhelmingly Condemns BDS
The New York City Council deserves much praise for overwhelmingly passing a resolution condemning the campaign to boycott the state of Israel and its people. The vote on September 14 was an overwhelming — 40 yeses, 4 noes, 6 abstentions and 1 absent. Council members clearly recognize the need to defend their city’s economic interests…
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Prepent Day 13+14: Too Busy for Self Love
Friday 9/16/16 Elul 13 5776 Today, we are publishing a double love letter for your double super Sabbath souls. Wishing you a restful, peaceful, and love-ful Sabbath. Be back on Sunday! Dear Pain In My Neck, You have been with me for years, at times so bad I had to take days off from work…
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Prepent Day 12: Please Forgive Me, Again, for Not Visiting
Thursday 9/15/16 Elul 12 5776 Dear N., I hope you are feeling better today. This time last year, I wrote to you with an apology for not visiting you often enough. It was a difficult year for your health and a super busy year for me with grief, work and school. And yet, you are…
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Breaking the Prison Pipeline for Young Adults with Mental Illness
They are young, addicted and frequently mentally ill. They commit crimes to feed their addictions or to stave off perceived demons. And, almost always, they end up in prison. But such a response rarely treats their underlying problems, reduces crime, or curtails recidivism. Instead, it usually just aggravates conditions, triggers a vicious cycle of repeat…
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Why I’m a Jew Against Trump
Never in the history of American politics has a man so antagonistic to Jewish values achieved as much acclaim as Donald Trump has. As a rabbi and as a Jewish American, I cannot ignore three undeniable qualities of Trump’s campaign that fly in the face of my religious values: Trump foments fear of the other,…
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The Little-Known Genetic Test All Ashkenazi Jewish Women Should Take
I used to brag about my genes. The women in my family didn’t get grey hair until their 50’s, had very few wrinkles due to olive skin tone, and were plagued by no major illnesses, except for high cholesterol that was controlled via statins. The women in my mother’s maternal line lived into their 90’s….
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