A famed Holocaust denier is revising his revisionist thinking — and the move is opening up a rift among his fellow travelers. David Irving, who was released from prison last December in Austria after being convicted of Holocaust denial, recently announced that he is rethinking his position on the fate of European Jews during World…
After hitting Europe earlier this month, “The Israel Lobby” is preparing for a frontal assault on the Muslim world. The controversial book by American academics Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer, who accuse the pro-Israel lobby of hijacking American policy, hit bookstores in Europe in September and soon will be published across the Arab world and…
Britain’s largest academic union decided this week not to go ahead with discussions about potentially boycotting Israeli universities. Last May, the country’s University and College Union voted to open up discussions about the “moral implications” of ties with Israeli institutions in light of the “denial of educational rights” to Palestinians. Last week, the union’s legal…
Kibbutz Be’erot Yitzhak, Israel – Debate over how to implement the biblical injunction to let the Land of Israel lie fallow every seventh year is sowing the seeds for a potential rebellion against the state’s chief rabbinate. Since Rosh Hashanah, when the most recent sabbatical — or shmita — year began, Israel’s Modern and ultra…
Washington – Former secretary of defense William Cohen had long had a mezuza sitting around his house, but it was only during the recent High Holy Days that he got around to putting it up on his door. Cohen grew up going to synagogue, but after being spurned by his childhood rabbi, he distanced himself…
Jewish Sites Get Grants Jewish institutions were the primary recipients of federal grants from the Department of Homeland Security meant to help not-for-profits cope with security risks. Out of $24 million allocated this year, synagogues, Jewish community centers and other communal institutions received $19.6 million. Of the 308 not-for-profits that were awarded the grants, 251…
For us Ashkenazim, getting guidance in cooking the cuisine of our ancestors is easy: We just consult one of the many Ashkenazic cookbooks in our libraries. But for Syrian Jews raised in the Sephardic tradition, finding recipes that existed outside the minds of aging Syrian women has been nearly impossible. Until now, that is. Poopa…
Human beings have always been fascinated by twins. Romulus and Remus, Jacob and Esau, Mary-Kate and Ashley. We love ultrasound images of twins hugging (or punching) in utero, stories about shared secret languages, notions of twin-to-twin ESP, movies like “The Parent Trap.” (But c’mon, identical cousins? That’s crazy talk!) As children, many of us fantasized…
Republican presidential candidate John McCain is under fire from Jewish groups after saying the U.S. is a “Christian Nation.” In a video interview with beliefnet.com the Arizona senator said America was founded “on Christian principles” and that it is in fact a “Christian nation.” McCain, however, did add that he meant that “in the broadest…
Rep. Jim Moran is still feeling the heat after saying that Aipac pushed America to war in Iraq. First it was the Jewish lawmakers’ letter denouncing him, then came the rebuke from the Democratic leadership. Finally, Moran heard it from Aipac directly. The Washington Post reports that six Aipac members from Moran’s district met with…
Over the past few years, some congregations in New York City have put a new spin on the old song “Dancing in the Street” as they celebrate Simchat Torah, the annual completion and recommencement of the cycle of reading the Torah. The festival, which this year begins October 4 at sundown, is observed amid much…
דער מחבר איז אַן אַמעריקאַנער־געבוירענער ייִדיש־אַקטיוויסט, פּאָעט און איבערזעצער אין בערלין.
