For 125 years, the Forward has delivered accurate, timely and nuanced news to American Jews. From breaking news to in-depth investigations, our reporting team covers the people, institutions and issues that define the many ways to be Jewish in the…
News
-
How Orthodox Are Blocking East Ramapo School Reform Measure
A bill to appoint an overseer over an Orthodox-dominated New York school board appears to be on the brink of failure, despite the backing of New York’s governor, the chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents, the Rockland County Legislature, and a handful of advocacy groups. The bill’s expected defeat, which comes amid…
-
Marc Schneier Lashes Out at Rabbinic Group for ‘Betraying’ Him
Embattled Rabbi Marc Schneier is now claiming that the Rabbinical Council of America, Orthodox Judaism’s top rabbinical association, reneged on an arrangement he had reached with them in its decision to expel him due to an extramarital affair he had with a congregant. “This is a set-up, my friend. I feel betrayed and violated,” Schneier…
-
What’s Behind the Mass Layoffs at the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent?
The abrupt layoff of all editorial staffers at Philadelphia’s Jewish Exponent, the second-oldest Jewish newspaper in America, has highlighted the dire situation of local Jewish publications struggling to stay afloat. Fifteen journalists and production staffers were laid off on June 3 as part of a new experiment in the world of Jewish media: outsourcing editorial…
The Latest
-
Who’s Investigating Rabbis Who Cross the Line?
A rabbi who surfs the Internet for transsexual escorts stands trial for borrowing and stealing almost $500,000 from his congregation to pay off an extortionist. Another rabbi is sentenced to more than six years in jail for videotaping naked women in his synagogue’s ritual bath. A third rabbi is being told to leave his pulpit…
-
Could California Ban Anti-Israel Campus Protests as ‘Anti-Semitic’ Hate?
A 2010 State Department document provides the U.S. government’s only official definition of anti-Semitism. It is a detailed document that adds elements of anti-Israeli bias to the traditional definition of Jew hatred. This definition — developed to help the State Department monitor anti-Semitic trends in foreign countries — is now at the center of a…
-
Gaza Braces for Next War, But Last One Hasn’t Really Ended
GAZA CITY — The beach in Gaza City is a flat expanse, where the gray sand melds almost seamlessly into the water. I was sitting at Al-Deira Hotel’s beachside terrace in late May, watching the Mediterranean waves roll in, when there was a sharp bang. I had never heard such a noise in my life, and…
-
Praying at A Jewish Tomb in Shadow of ISIS
Al Qosh — Back when they still lived in Iraq, Kurdish Jews had a famous saying about the ancient synagogue believed to house the tomb of a biblical prophet in this beleaguered town on the high northern plateau of Nineveh province. On Shavuot they said, “He who has not made the pilgrimage to Nahum’s tomb has…
-
Marc Schneier Booted From Rabbinic Group Over Affair
Rabbi Marc Schneier, the spiritual leader of a tony congregation in the Hamptons, has been expelled from the Rabbinical Council of America, the Forward has learned. The five times married Schneier was quietly expelled from the Orthodox rabbinical group earlier this year in relation to allegations, in 2010, that he had an extramarital affair with…
-
Boxer Dustin Fleischer Steps Into Ring Packing Power of Survivor’s Punch
UPDATE: With the local crowd behind him at the Barclays Center, Fleischer scored a quick knockout Saturday night against Kareem Milner in his second professional fight.. Fleischer’s fast hands and aggressive style pushed Millner to the ropes right away. After barely a minute, with Milner seemingly about to keel over, the referee stepped. Fleischer’s record…
-
Calling All Newlyweds — Now You Can Make Birthright Your Honeymoon
(JTA) — Jay and Mikelle sat next to each other on the bus as it ascended the road to Jerusalem. Later the same day they accompanied each other on an emotional trip to Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust museum. The next day they planned to trek up to the desert fortress at Masada and swim together…
-
Reconstructionists Shake Up Boring Annual Report With Web, Video — and Even a Christian!
The Reconstructionist Rabbinical College has released what may be the quirkiest annual report in the mundane history of Jewish annual reports. Instead of the standard-issue PDF, chock full of corny staged photos and tritely colored financial bar graphs, the RRC built its 2015 report into an interactive website that captures the democratic essence of the…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Opinion Is starvation in Gaza really Israel’s fault? The facts are clear
- 2
News That whites-only, no Jews allowed Arkansas community is legal, says state’s attorney general. How?
- 3
Film & TV How Jon Stewart evolved on Israel — at least on ‘The Daily Show’
- 4
Opinion I have the answer to Jon Stewart’s toughest question about Israel
In Case You Missed It
-
Opinion A beloved peace activist was killed in the West Bank. Can his death finally teach us empathy?
-
Opinion As an Israeli political scientist, I resisted thinking this war was a genocide. Here’s what changed my mind
-
Opinion Israelis want out of the Gaza war. But all the exit routes feel like traps
-
Fast Forward Antisemitic conspiracy theories about Jeffrey Epstein are proliferating — and entering the mainstream
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
