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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Can Immersion In A Mikveh Be Healing For Sexual Assault Victims?
As a Jewish community, how can we support survivors of sexual assault in recovering from “spiritual trauma?” I was surprised, in my study of the Babylonian Talmud, a passage that suggests that survivors of sexual assault may voluntarily immerse themselves in a mikvah — an ancient spiritual practice responding to an all-too contemporary situation. Such…
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I Have A Disability — But Judaism Empowers Me To Advocate For Inclusion
A version of this article originally appeared in New Voices. I’ve met member of the House Bipartisan Disabilities Caucus Rep. James Langevin (D-RI), networked with RespectAbilityUSA president Jennifer Laszlo-Mizrahi, and practiced my ASL with program director of Gallaudet University Hillel Jacob Salem, the first-ever Hillel director who is Deaf. One year ago, as a freshman…
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I’m A School Psychologist — And I Think Teachers Should Be Armed.
I’ve been a School Psychologist for the past 20 years. In the wake of the school shootings in Florida, I am brought right back to December 7, 2017, the day of the deadly mass shooting at the high school I currently serve. In the aftermath, I helped to counsel students through the trauma caused by…
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Should Hamantaschen Be Sweet Or Savory?
The Jewish holiday of Purim is fast-approaching: In 2018, the holiday begins the night of February 28 and ends March 1st. The holiday, which commemorates the tale of how Queen Esther spoiled Haman’s plot to massacre the Jews in Persia, is often celebrated in part by baking (and eating) hamantaschen, triangular cookies with a filling…
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20th Century Fox Was My Family’s Jewish Success Story. Will Disney Destroy Our Legacy?
Disney’s impending takeover of 20th Century Fox film studio feels like a death in the family. Why? Because I carry Wurtzel blood. Three generations of my family toiled to make Fox a Hollywood powerhouse. Just over 100 years ago, New York Jewish movie mogul William Fox dispatched my great-grandfather Sol M. Wurtzel from the Lower…
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I Only Date Other Jews. Does That Make Me A Racist?
At a recent dinner party, a fervent argument broke out over the way one chooses romantic partners. Penny, an old friend of my partner Ellen, invited us to meet her new husband; she is Jewish, he is not. They had met at a mutual friend’s party. Ellen and I, I told them, had met on…
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How To Have A Beautiful, Stress-Free Purim
If you are like me, you keep seeing the products in the stores and promotions for Megillah readings and carnivals. You turn around and realize that Purim is just around the corner and you have packages, menus and costumes to prepare, and not enough time to get everything done! Below are some no-fail solutions to…
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Are We Powerless To Stop Gun Violence?
When one looks at the readily-available online list of mass shootings, which take place way too often during peaceful times in our great country, it is impossible not to be terrified and even ashamed that the our great country seems helpless to put an end to it. 59 killed and 500 injured in Los Vegas….
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I Never Imagined Seeing My Religious Former Principal In Handcuffs
A version of this article originally appeared in +61J, an Australian Jewish publication. As a former teacher at the Adass Israel school in Melbourne, Australia, I never imagined that a day would come when I would be sitting in a Jerusalem courtroom a meter away from the principal of the school with handcuffs around her…
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Inside The World’s Oldest University — Where Christians, Jews and Muslims Have Studied
Have you ever heard of the University of Al-Quaraouiyine in Fes, Morocco? I hadn’t either, until the popular video blogger Nuseir Yassin, the Israeli-Arab globetrotter behind Nas Daily posted a video about it. It’s the world’s oldest university, was founded by Muslim woman, and its notable alumni include leaders of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism —…
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It’s Time We Unmask Purim’s Dark Truths
God is missing from the Purim megillah. This is disturbing and adds to the moral void in which the story takes place. Esther’s very name comes from the Hebrew nistar, which means “hidden.” There is much about Esther which is hidden — her ambiguous relationship with Mordechai, her Jewish heritage, her deception of the king….
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