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
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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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Keith Ellison: I Have Fought Against Hate My Entire Career
This story was originally published on Medium and was reprinted with permission. I ran for Congress more than a decade ago because I imagined a more inclusive, tolerant, and welcoming America and I’ve used my seat in Congress to try to make that vision a reality. I’ve voted to strengthen hate crime laws. I’ve introduced…
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Why I Led My Orthodox Classmates On The National Gun Walkout
CHICAGO (JTA) — I’m a sophomore at Ida Crown Jewish Academy, the largest Modern Orthodox high school in the Chicagoland area. When I heard about the #ENOUGH national school walkout, I immediately wondered how my school could participate. Our school motto is “Inspiring Bnei and Bnot Torah to thrive in the modern world”; here was…
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How To Clean For Passover — Without Losing Your Mind
The intent of this guide is to make your life easier, as G-d intended for it to be. It will hopefully allow you to focus more on the spiritual experience of the Passover Seder night and spend less time, money and energy on unnecessary cleaning and on purchasing expensive certified Kosher products. Even if you…
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I’ve Been Fighting Farrakhan’s Hate For Decades — With Music
The first time I heard Louis Farrakhan speak, he called Judaism a “gutter religion.” I was shocked that in the 1980’s, only 35 years after Auschwitz, that anyone would speak that way in public and not be denounced immediately. I was a cantor at a Conservative synagogue in Norwalk, CT, a diverse community about an…
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4 Critical Ways Jewish Institutions Can Learn From #MeToo
As #MeToo stories continue to emerge, we all seem to be uncertain about what to do next. While very personal conversations about predators and prey will play out in the public sphere, I believe the public discourse must center not on the violent acts themselves, but on what allows the violence to happen: How men…
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Should The Jewish Community Give The Women’s March A Second Chance?
Social media, and Twitter in particular, is an endless stream of call outs. People are “canceled.” careers are “over.” Anyone who wants to hire a talented person and give them a second chance faces boycotts and backlash. Anyone who wants to dialogue is a “sell out” or “complicit.” Everyone has a long memory. There has…
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What Prison Taught Me About Gun Control
On February 14, I was glued to the television as events unfolded in Parkland. Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School is fewer than 50 miles from where I live, and the events seemed all too close to home. I have three children who attend a Jewish day school in Miami and my wife works there as…
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The Mystical Reason Jews Rush To Get Married Before Passover
It is definitely that time of year again. Aside from receiving numerous envelopes which ominously read “Important Tax Document Enclosed,” the typical ultra-Orthodox Jewish mailbox is filed with an equally anxiety-producing sort of correspondence this time of year: A deluge of wedding invitations. Since the beginning of February, my family has received five ivory envelopes…
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Our Very Own Forward Scribe Contributor Won A ‘Woman Of Valor’ Award
Our very own Cindy Grosz, a prolific Scribe contributor and author of You Don’t Have To Be Jewish with Cindy, will be honored at the 2018 Young Israel Dinner with the Aishes Chayil (Woman Of Valor) Award for her work as a pro-Israel and education activist. Mazal tov, Cindy!
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Over 50 Rabbis And Communal Leaders Call For More Women At The Top Of Jewish Organizations
It’s time to act. As a community, we have talked about the issue of gender equality for a long time. It has become part of who we are as Jews. We have made terrific strides in some areas of our communal life towards equality, but hiring at the senior levels of Jewish organizations isn’t one…
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3 Ways To Take Your Matzo Game To The Next Level This Passover
Passover is fast-approaching — as is the prospect of eight matzo-filled days. But that doesn’t have to be a drag. The following quick and delicious recipes make a delectable addition to the holiday. For something savory, the Springtime Avocado Matzah Toast and Cheesy Spinach-Artichoke Matzah Toast are bursting with flavor with the perfect crunch. For…
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