Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the robust lives of American Jews. Here there’s a little of everything about the multifaceted world of Jewish life. There are light-hearted Jewish celebrity stories and shocking Jewish celebrity news. Food is also plentiful,…
Life
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Jewish matchmaking won’t stop for coronavirus — but it has moved online
In our new era of social distancing, most people are focusing on what they can’t do. In New York and other cities, it’s now impossible to have dinner out or grab coffee with a coworker. You can’t get your nails done or see a film. But there’s one pastime that is proceeding without interruption: online…
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5 new Jewish prayers written for this pandemic
Sometimes, a situation is so surreal, so radically different from anything one has ever experienced before — that old words don’t feel sufficient, that new prayers must be imagined and transcribed in order to give language to the fears of the times. As the world grapples with a raging health crisis, Jewish thinkers are composing…
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Amid COVID-19, a powerful lesson about inwardness
The last two weeks have thrust us all into a frightening new reality. Coronavirus, COVID-19, has flooded our lives , upending routines, exposing the fragilities – and regular imbecilities – of our social, economic and especially political structures, challenging us to rethink how to relive our lives, so that we can go on, literally, living…
The Latest
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In Leviticus, an unexpected lesson in surviving quarantine
Up until two weeks ago, I thought that Vayikra, Leviticus, was the least relevant – and the most alienating – of the Books of Moses. After all, why would I want to read about animal sacrifices and types of impurity? What do the endless litanies of priestly rituals have to do with my actual life?…
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‘We created beautiful environments in those restaurants. It’s hard to capture that in a paper bag.’
For restaurants and the people behind them, COVID-19 has been a wrecking ball. Along with the material losses and wrenching staff cuts, the emotional toll on restaurateurs and their teams has been brutal. How are they managing through the crisis? What changes have they instituted to survive? The Forward spoke to seven Jewish restaurant owners…
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Unsung Women | Edith Stein
Who she was: Edith Stein Where and when: Germany, 1891-1942 Who she worshipped: Although Stein was born into an Orthodox German Jewish family, she converted to Catholicism as a young woman and became a Carmelite nun. In the Catholic world, she soon became a significant intellectual voice, translating the works of Thomas Aquinas and writing…
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Unsung Women | Miriam Spiria-Luria
Who she was: Miriam Spira-Luria Where and when: 15th-century Padua What we know: If Miriam Spira-Luria were alive today, she’d be a public intellectual and a prominent voice on Jewish Twitter. But in a cloistered religious community controlled by men, she could never even get a seat at the table. Spira-Luria was born in Germany…
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Seder tips for Passover in the coronavirus era
Is coronavirus causing you to lead your first Seder? Are you scrambling to put something together without the usual players at your Seder? Are you wondering how on earth you can do a Seder alone? Have no fear! You will be fine. Seder will be different this year but that is okay. Making the Seder…
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Bintel Brief is Back: ‘Dear Abbys’ dish advice in dark times
From its creation in 1906, A Bintel Brief was a pillar of the Forward, and a trendsetter for advice columns across the United States. Yiddish for “a bundle of letters,” the column began out of necessity as so many readers wrote in sharing their troubles. The editor’s blunt answers helped waves of Eastern European immigrants…
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How to host a socially distanced, international Passover Seder
In all other years, the energy of my family’s Passover celebration emanates from sharing the holiday with new guests, including some who have never been to a Seder. But this year, our “socially distanced” seder will be limited to our immediate family. I know that if we sang the same songs and did the same…
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Diary of a Day-School Mom: screen-shy, yet finding spirituality on a device?
Week Two, and online prayer is still a hard sell for all of us. It’s disappointing, because when my daughter and I dipped into it as part of the day-school distance-learning schedule, and it was such a blessing — for both her and me. Such a powerful experience was a surprise. A capsule history of…
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