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Declassified KGB Study Illuminates Early Years of Soviet Jewish Emigration
In the midst of celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of the Soviet Jewry movement, a set of recently released Soviet-era documents has shed new light on the beginnings of the wave of Jewish emigration that transformed Israeli and American Jewish life. The Jewish exodus from the Soviet Union, which formally began in 1967 when the…
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Intermarriage Study Muddies Waters
A research project is offering a new view on how interfaith couples raise their children, with a few major surprises. The new overview, published in the 2007 American Jewish Yearbook, compares the rates at which intermarried couples in different cities raise Jewish children. It comes on the heels of a study of the Jewish population…
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Reform Commentary Spotlights Women
The Reform movement is rolling out a new critical commentary on the Torah, written entirely by women scholars. The new tome combines a number of diverse elements, including biblical scholarship, poetry and entries that focus on how women’s issues are dealt with in Scripture. “The Torah: A Women’s Commentary,” published by the Union for Reform…
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Faith Groups Join Immigration Fray in Iowa
As the presidential contenders rush to score political points before the Iowa caucuses, a number of the state’s faith leaders are criticizing what they say is unnecessarily harsh rhetoric on immigration coming from several Republican campaigns. In little more than a month, activists have gathered thousands of signatures and assembled an ad hoc coalition that…
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Bush Burns Hanukkah Candle at Both Ends
Washington — President Bush had a day full of Jews last Monday. The Jewish festivities began at a discussion that Bush held with 15 Jewish communal leaders who escaped religious persecution in their countries of origin. After that, he moved on to a Hanukkah candle lighting, where a menorah that belonged to the great-grandfather of…
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Romney Draws Fire for Speech on Religion
Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney gave a much publicized speech this week on religion, politics and his Mormon faith, and Jewish groups wasted little time in criticizing it. While they endorsed Romney’s affirmation of the principles of religious toleration and the separation of church and state, both the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee…
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In First, U.N. OKs Israel-backed Appeal
In a historic first, a committee of the United Nations General Assembly adopted an Israeli-initiated resolution on working matters. The resolution deals with agricultural technology for development, a relatively apolitical matter. But even such apolitical issues have not managed to squeeze past Arab opposition in the past. Supported by 118 countries, the resolution was introduced…
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GELT COMPLEX: IPF Chief Stays Put, Rabbi Praises Putin
IPF Chief Stays Put The Israel Policy Forum’s lay leadership blocked an attempt to replace the group’s president. Seymour Reich, who has been heading the organization since 2005, will remain president for another year. Karen Adler, IPF’s vice chair of government relations, had challenged Reich’s presidency, urging members to elect her as Reich’s replacement. According…
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To Dance or Not To Dance?
‘So, are they going to do a mezinke at your brother’s wedding?” a Jewish friend asked this past spring, one eyebrow raised quizzically, as we watched our children play on a jungle gym. I shrugged my shoulders and changed the subject. To her, it was a question of tradition. To me, it was a full-fledged…
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A Board Game for the Faithful
You roll the eight-sided die and land on the “Blow the shofar and roll again” space; the next roll puts you on a “question card” space, and you’re asked, “Which Hebrew letter would be on a shield or mezuzah holder?” Would you know the answer? Would your kids? Erik Newton of Campbell, Calif., hopes you…
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Seeking Advice: The December Dilemma
This time of year, interfaith couples often struggle to find balance in celebrating the holidays. A recent article in the New York Times discusses conflicts that arise over rituals, decorations and gifts, and even the Anti-Defamation League has offered schools and government offices guidance for negotiating the “December Dilemma.” Those seeking answers to such seasonal…
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