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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An Expert Shares 11 Security Tips For Synagogues After Pittsburgh
Eleven people were tragically killed last month in Pittsburgh when a gunman attacked the Tree of Life Synagogue in an apparent anti-Semitic hate crime. Reports indicate that the synagogue had created a security plan and had practiced active-shooter drills, yet Tree of Life had its doors open during Saturday’s Shabbat service. This is an extremely…
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After Pittsburgh, I Empathize More With Black Americans
On Shabbat morning October 27, I was visiting my former community of Boca Raton, Florida for Shabbat. I was running a Teen Shabbaton in the local Synagogue, and Congressman Deutch was the featured after-lunch speaker. Minutes before, he had told me privately about the shooting in Pittsburgh, and I had asked him not to disturb…
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2018 Voting Issues — According To A Jewish Trump Supporter
Cindy Grosz spoke to the Forward by phone; what she shared with us has been edited for clarity. When voting in the 2018 midterm elections, it’s important to look at the voting records of people who have been in office at the local, state and federal level. I support candidates who are concerned about Jewish…
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6 Jewish Voting Issues — According To A Progressive Rabbi
The 2018 Midterm elections are arguably the most significant off-year elections in our nation’s history, and they come as Jews are still reeling from the shooting of 11 worshippers at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue. While there’s been no shortage of discussion about what’s at stake this year, here are six issues to consider from…
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We Found Love And Healing In Pittsburgh
News of the largest attack against Jews in the history of America was devastating. 11 people were murdered during Sabbath services at the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh. Many rabbinic colleagues and I knew we just had to be there. As soon as we arrived, we made our way to the makeshift memorial in…
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Our Neighbors Graffitied Our Synagogue — With Love
“Is there anything inappropriate about chalk drawings outside a synagogue?” The query came to me via text from one of my congregants. I wrote back, somewhat puzzled, to ask for context. In response, she told me that one of her non-Jewish friends wanted to organize a graffiti love-in for our small-town synagogue. “It’s supposed to…
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As A Black Jew, I Am Angry But Defiant After Pittsburgh
This piece originally appeared on the Be’chol Lashon Jewish& blog and was shared with us by My Jewish Learning, a sister site of JTA. SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — On Saturday, I received a text: “why do they hate us so much?” It was from my daughter, a first-year student at college who is thousands of…
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Anti-Semitism Isn’t Just A Right-Wing Problem
Anti-Semitism isn’t new — and it isn’t dead. There are still two million fewer Jews alive today than there were in 1939. Jews represent less than 2% of the U.S. population and less than 0.2% of the world’s population. Yet, despite our small numbers, Jews are victims of more reported hate crimes than any other…
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How Interfaith Families Can Heal After Pittsburgh
Around the time my relationship with my now-wife Rachael took a turn for the serious, we went for a hike in the desert and talked about religion. Rachael is Jewish. I am Catholic. Rachael’s Jewishness was mostly cultural. (Holiday recipes, yes! Holiday services or prayers, absolutely no!) By contrast, religion in all forms has always…
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Why American And Israeli Jews View Pittsburgh So Differently
Reactions to the terrible shooting in Pittsburgh have revealed the deepening rift between American and Israeli Jews. As an American who is also a recent immigrant to Israel, I find myself in an awkward position. The murderer in Pittsburgh did not just make anti-Semitic pronouncements, but specifically acted because of the activities of the Hebrew…
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Post-Pittsburgh, Interfaith Alliances Are More Important Than Ever
Current events in America have been brutal. Last Saturday’s terror attack at the Tree of Life synaoguge — arguably the deadliest assault on Jews in American history — was yet another horrific tragedy. Jewish organizations have rightly been condemning this hateful act, standing together with countless non-Jewish allies in the process. This is an important…
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