What we will miss most is his voice. It was muscular and musical, with an accent that sounded vaguely British at first, but later revealed itself to be all-American, with leftover “aahs” from Boston. When Gerald Wolpe died May 18 at the age of 81, American Jews lost one of our greatest sermonizers, one of…
Blame my Midwestern roots, or the 10 years I’ve spent as a vegetarian, but no single category of food can make me swoon like cheese. I have been known to devour a block of cheddar, sliver by salty sliver, over the course of an afternoon. And when Shavuot rolls around — celebrating the giving of…
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will use his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday to stress that “time is running out” for stopping Iran’s nuclear program, so Obama must not spend more than a few months on his planned dialogue with Tehran unless real progress is achieved. If progress is not achieved within a…
Some 40 percent of Israeli Arabs believe the Holocaust never happened, according to a new survey. The figure is up from 28 percent in 2006, according to an annual University of Haifa poll of Jewish-Arab relations released Sunday. The poll also found that 41 percent of Israeli Arabs believe the country should exist as a…
A TRIBUTE TO LYRICISTS BETTY COMDEN AND ADOLPH GREEN AT NY FESTIVAL OF SONG “Carried Away,” New York Festival of Song’s April 14 tribute to lyricists Betty Comden and Adolph Green, held at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, was a joy for those who relish songs with literate lyrics and edgy wit that tickle the…
NEWS ITEM: The Israeli military has issued new regulations that impose greater restrictions on the ability of soldiers to grow beards. Religious soldiers are still allowed to have facial hair, but now they must get authorization from their units’ rabbis and commanders — a policy that has come in for some criticism. Recently, an Orthodox…
President Obama will seek to revive the moribund Middle East peace process in his first official meeting with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu, offering a new regional initiative that aims to bridge increasing differences between the new governments in Washington and Jerusalem. The new approach takes the 2002 Arab peace initiative another step forward by making…
A new label just went up alongside the other colorful stickers and pamphlets adorning the window of Your Heights Café in northern Manhattan. It’s a seal with an image of clasped hands, and it was given out by a new organization looking to improve working conditions in New York’s kosher restaurants. This month, the Orthodox…
Just before sundown on a Friday evening, Rachel Nathanson turned on a lamp in her living room and recited the prayer traditionally said upon kindling Sabbath candles. Then she said the blessing over the wine, allowing herself a single sip of grape juice. She purposely skipped the blessing over the challah — “I don’t trust…
When the alleged murderer of Wesleyan University student Johanna Justin-Jinich shattered the idyllic calm of this leafy Connecticut campus, it was just the beginning of his plans, police say. In his journal and other writings, they say, alleged killer Stephen Morgan wrote, “I think it’s okay to kill Jews, and go on a killing spree…
Outside their classroom window a beautiful spring afternoon is blooming, but a few students at Ramaz, a Modern Orthodox academy in Manhattan, have stayed after school for a foreign-language club. After teacher Orit Nawrocki drills them on their siblings’ ages and on various vegetables, all in an unfamiliar language, she bids them farewell. “See you…
