This article is part of our morning briefing. Click here to get it delivered to your inbox each weekday. Everything you need to know about today’s Supreme Court vs. Netanyahu government drama – and what’s at stake for Israel
“No matter the result,” according to our colleagues at Haaretz, “Sept. 12, 2023, will be remembered as a historic day for Israeli democracy — and possibly the beginning of a constitutional crisis, or worse.” For the first time in Israeli history, today all 15 justices of the Supreme Court convened in Jerusalem. They’re hearing arguments about a law passed in July, the first part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial plan allowing the Knesset to override Supreme Court rulings, strike down laws and appoint justices. For those who back Netanyahu, it’s a much-needed recalibration of a court that has overreached. But to the millions who have protested weekly since Netanyahu returned to office, it marks the beginning of the end of the Israeli dream. The hearings, which began this morning and are expected to go well into the afternoon in Israel, are being livestreamed to a captivated populace — inside homes, bars and at public venues like the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, which waived admission fees and is broadcasting the court proceedings today. During a sometimes heated hearing, Justice Isaac Amit said, “Democracy dies in a series of small steps.” |
Tens of thousands protested Monday outside the Supreme Court in Jerusalem. (Getty) |
Sermonizing about Israel can be risky. But this High Holiday season, some rabbis feel they must: With the roiling protests, the ascendance of the religious right and the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, it’s almost become harder to avoid Israel this year than address it, said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism. “This is the moment to give a sermon that’s full-throated — very supportive of the ideals of Israel, and therefore very concerned about the erosion of those ideals.” Read the story ➤ For Israelis on the streets, the protests aren’t really about the courts: In the U.S., stories focus on the political machinations of the conservative, religious coalition led by Netanyahu. On the streets, however, the protests are about everyday life, writes our Mira Fox, who traveled to Israel to report on the demonstrations. “They are filled with people protesting for their own identities — as queer people, as activists, as academics and doctors and soldiers who only want to fight for secular democracy — as they fight for the country’s.” Read the story ➤ |
Watch: Daniel Gordis and Dahlia Scheindlin sit on opposite sides of the Israeli political spectrum. But they broadly agree that Netanyahu’s current judicial overhaul plan is an existential threat to the democratic character of the Jewish state. They joined our opinion editor, Laura E. Adkins, on Monday to discuss what they’re watching as the Israeli Supreme Court hears arguments against the government’s first piece of legislation, and what comes next for both Netanyahu and the protest movement. |
White supremacists appear to be targeting synagogues that livestream their services. (Getty) |
How to protect your congregation from bomb threats during High Holiday services: A Bay Area synagogue was forced to evacuate Friday following a false report to the local sheriff’s department. That follows a summer when white supremacists tried to disrupt services at dozens of synagogues across the country. The extremists behind the calls seem to target institutions that post live video of their services online, hoping to watch in real-time as police burst into the sanctuary. Our Arno Rosenfeld gathered advice from security experts about how to keep shuls safe from these threats. Read the story ➤ Elon Musk doubted biblical miracles but loves Mel Brooks: When Musk was a child and heard the story of the parting of the Red Sea, his response was: “What do you mean, the waters parted? That’s not possible.” That’s just one of the anecdotes in the highly anticipated new biography of the world’s richest man, which comes out today. We got an early copy and discovered stories about Kanye West, Larry David and Mel Brooks. Missing from the 670-page tome? Anything about Musk’s feud with the Anti-Defamation League. Read the story ➤ Plus… |
WHAT ELSE YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY |
A new eternal flame was made from the damaged stained glass that survived an act of arson in 2021. (Courtesy) |
? A Texas congregation is set to host its first Rosh Hashanah services since the synagogue was damaged in a 2021 arson attack. A new ner tamid, or eternal flame, has been constructed out of the burned stained glass deemed structurally unsound for use as a window. (JTA) ✈️ A member of Goyim Defense League was extradited to the Netherlands, where he will stand trial for projecting an antisemitic message onto the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. (JTA) ? Mark Robinson is the Republican front-runner in the North Carolina governor’s race. He has a history of downplaying the threat of Nazism, invoking antisemitic stereotypes and targeting other minority groups. (JTA) ? A centuries-old Jewish prayer book sold for around $89,000 at auction. The sellers, retired teachers, were shocked. They had taken a Harry Potter book to get assessed by an auctioneer, and only brought the siddur along as an afterthought. (Times of Israel) ⚾ Jacob Steinmetz, the first known Orthodox player drafted into Major League Baseball, is making it work by walking to the stadium on Shabbat and getting kosher meals delivered to wherever he’s playing. The Arizona Diamondbacks foot the bill. (Washington Post) ? A Kanye West impersonator wore a “Jewish Lives Matter” shirt at New York Fashion Week. “People hire me to do bar mitzvahs, birthday parties, corporate events, meet and greets,” he said. (NY Jewish Week)
Shiva calls ➤ Eva Fahidi, an Auschwitz survivor who became a dancer late in life, died at 97 … Leni Reiss, the longtime editor of the Jewish News of Greater Phoenix, died at 84 … Oded David Graucher, a popular Jewish singer known as Dedi, died at 62 … Emma Igual, a Jewish aid worker from Spain, was struck by a projectile in Ukraine, likely a Russian mortar shell, and died at 32. |
Gustav Mahler photographed in 1907. (Wikimedia) |
On this day in history (1910): The Jewish-born composer Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 premiered at the Munich Philharmonic. Nicknamed the “Symphony of a Thousand,” it made waves for its massive scale: The program notes for the premiere declared the piece required 858 singers and 171 instrumentalists. It was also one of the most complex religious statements by the composer — who converted to Catholicism and had an ambivalent relationship with religion — with one scholar describing it as “a union of pagan and Christian mysticism.” |
Great wines can elevate a Rosh Hashanah meal, but it can be difficult to know where to begin. Our Laura E. Adkins and Rob Eshman taste-tested 11 bottles from around the world — whites, reds and a rosé — in the $20-$35 price range. Some lived up to their hopes — and others fell flat. They share their honest reviews and pairing advice in the video above, and give all the details here. — Thanks to Laura E. Adkins, Arno Rosenfeld and Talya Zax for contributing to today’s newsletter, and to Beth Harpaz for editing it. You can reach the “Forwarding” team at editorial@forward.com.
Hope you have a terrific day. |
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