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A Revived Interest in Death
Why are American Jews interested in washing dead bodies? For many, the work of the chevra kadisha, or Jewish burial society, takes some getting used to: A corpse is lovingly washed and tended to according to local custom and ancient ritual, dressed in linen shrouds and laid in the plainest of coffins. Rabbi Joel Soffin,…
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Bush’s Odds in 2004 Depend on the Economy
At this moment, one of the hottest political questions is: Who will be the Democratic candidate for president? Right now, Howard Dean appears to be the frontrunner. But he is not necessarily the only candidate who could fare well in a contest with President Bush. Almost any one of the serious present aspirants has a…
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Israel Fears Isolation, Sanctions Over Fence
WASHINGTON — Bracing for a ruling against its separation fence by the World Court — which could pave the way for South Africa-style international sanctions — Israel and its allies here are considering a campaign to discredit the court as a biased organ of the United Nations. The proposed campaign is highly controversial even among…
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CAMPAIGN CONFIDENTIAL
Kerry Question: Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, after jumping down Howard Dean’s throat last fall when Dean suggested that America should pursue an “evenhanded” policy in Middle East negotiations, used a similar phrase himself on the campaign trail in New Hampshire, according to a tape supplied by a rival campaign. Dean later apologized for using the…
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Embattled Foundation Enlists Eizenstat
The Ford Foundation has hired a former Clinton administration official with strong ties to the Jewish community to help promote a new policy forbidding grant recipients from supporting terrorism or bigotry. The appointment of Stuart Eizenstat comes as key leaders in Congress say they will move forward to investigate the use of Ford funds and…
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Lives –– and Legacies –– in Law
There is an age-old connection between Judaism and law. For centuries, rabbis and other Jewish scholars studied, re-studied and ceaselessly interpreted the Talmud, producing a vast corpus of juridical writing, which to many was the very heart of the Jewish religious tradition. Jews have always prized the scholarship of judges and lawyers in their own…
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DER YIDDISH-VINKL January 9, 2004
Stanley Siegelman returns to Der Vinkl once again with his inimitable, irresistible, irrepressible sense of humor, penned in Yinglish poetry (a mix of Yiddish and English). His masterpiece this time is inspired by a recent news item from Rio de Janeiro. Gerald Thomas, the Jewish director of a performance of Richard Wagner’s opera “Tristan and…
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Law as Social Action: A Life in Advocacy Recalling Five Jewish Justices
In 1945 Will Maslow set out to defend the lives of Jews across America with something no one had ever considered a weapon: a law degree. Until that point, the American Jewish community had attempted to fight antisemitism and prejudice largely through “brotherhood meetings” and other quiet strategies aimed at conciliating and persuading the Christian…
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Pressured, Assad Offers Charm Campaign
TEL AVIV — Syrian President Bashar al-Assad continued his version of a peace offensive this week, publicly offering to give up weapons of mass destruction if Israel agreed to do the same, knowing in advance that it won’t. Israel’s Prime Minister Sharon replied in kind, sending a message to Assad that if the Syrian leader…
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Chanukah Menorahs Recalled by Crate and Barrel
Just hours before Chanukah began, the popular catalog store Crate and Barrel recalled 800 menorahs because of a fire hazard. If the candles in the menorah are allowed to burn down completely, the menorah’s acrylic base can ignite, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said in an official statement on December 19 (Chanukah began that…
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Jews, Muslims Forge Bonds on Christmas
While newspaper headlines describe increasing tensions between Muslims and Jews worldwide, a small group of neighbors in Cambridge, Mass. — Muslims and Jews who worship at institutions across the street from each other — tell another story. “I want to prove to myself and the world that Jews and Muslims can work together, be friends…
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