JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Western Wall stones were cleaned and sanitized ahead of Passover. Every year, the prayer notes tucked between the stones in the wall are removed at Passover and before the High Holidays, and buried with other sacred papers according to Jewish law in the cemetery on the Mount of Olives. This year,…
The Anti-Defamation League has released a list of tips to prevent “Zoombombing,” a tactic white supremacists and internet trolls are using to hack video conferences and project pornographic, racist and anti-Semitic imagery. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, people are relying more heavily on online video conferencing software like Zoom, which has created new opportunities for…
(JTA) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he is renaming proposed state hate crime legislation in honor of the Monsey stabbing victim who died on Sunday. “I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Josef Neumann, who suffered brutal stab wounds after an attacker invaded the home of Rabbi Chaim Rottenberg on…
(JTA) — Six employees and four residents of a Jewish-operated assisted-living facility in suburban Atlanta have tested positive for the coronavirus. Jewish HomeLife, which operates Berman Commons in Dunwoody, Georgia, sent a letter on Sunday to residents of the facility and their families, the Atlanta Jewish Times reported. Two days earlier, four residents in the…
(JTA) — The most seriously injured victim of the stabbing attack at a rabbi’s home in Monsey in late December has died. Josef Neumann, 72, died on Sunday afternoon. Though he remained in a coma from the time of the attack to his death, he had begun to open his eyes in February, leading to…
As part of a survey about how Americans think about religion, the Pew Research Center asked respondents last month to answer the question, “Who is the first person who comes to mind when you think of Judaism?” The most common answer, according to Pew, was Jesus. Some 21% of respondents named Jesus as the first…
(JTA) — A Florida campaign office for Bernie Sanders was vandalized with swastikas. A tweet Saturday from the Florida for Bernie account showed two large swastikas painted in black and the words “voting didn’t stop us last time.” It did not say where in Florida the office is located. “Didn’t know if we should share,…
(JTA) — A New Jersey man sent Facebook messages to Gov. Phil Murphy and others threatening harm Orthodox Jews for violating state coronavirus restrictions. Anthony Lodespoto, 43, of Howell, was charged Friday with making terroristic threats during a state of emergency, law enforcement officials said in a statement. Lodespoto allegedly used Facebook’s direct messaging feature…
(JTA) — Among the mysteries of the coronavirus is that some patients suffer and ultimately die from the disease while others experience the symptoms as akin to a mild cold. Rabbi Daniel Nevins is in the latter category. The dean of the rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary, Nevins was laid up for a…
BUENOS AIRES (JTA) — Despite protests from a Jewish community near Buenos Aires, the first Jewish victim of the coronavirus in Argentina was cremated by local authorities, causing controversy and sparking concern among other Jewish communities throughout the country. Cremation of the dead is not allowed under religious Jewish law. Ruben Bercovich, a 59-year-old businessman…
When President Trump’s new chief of staff contacted the Jewish doctor treating coronavirus symptoms in upstate New York, he found more than a creative medical professional whose off-label experiment had potential. He found an ardent defender of the president, as some of his recent social media activity indicates. Zelenko’s cocktail of anti-malarial drugs and antibiotics…
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