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After Brooklyn Fire, Assessing the Risks of Shabbat Technology
Every Friday before sundown, in countless observant Jewish homes across the United States, someone turns on a hot plate or a gas stovetop, and then doesn’t turn it off again for twenty-five hours. The practice is so common that it blends into the background of traditionally observant Jewish life. But since a malfunctioning Sabbath hot…
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My Lonely Passover in Uruguay
My college study-abroad term in Montevideo, Uruguay, left me with reasonable fluency in Spanish, a fear of slugs in sandwiches, the knowledge of more than a dozen soccer chants — and a deep, visceral love for the Jewish holiday of Passover and its accompanying festive Seder meal. The year before I lived in Uruguay, I’d…
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Can Israeli American Council Grow Without Kow-Towing to Big Donors Like Sheldon Adelson?
It was a gala reminiscent of the good old days of Jewish organizational philanthropy. When leaders of the Israeli American Council described the new community center they intend to build for Israeli expats in the San Fernando Valley, and the $10 million price tag that comes with it, hands were raised from the audience that…
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Rabbis 2015 Barry Dov Katz
Some rabbis inspire with charisma. Rabbi Barry Dov Katz inspires in a different way: through one-on-one relationships, active listening, and genuinely caring about his congregants. When Rabbi Katz came to the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale 17 years ago, the congregation was mostly older. Today it is a dynamic community of Jews of all…
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Rabbis 2015 Ayelet S. Cohen
Rabbi Ayelet Cohen was the first non-LGBT rabbi I remember who chose to work at Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, New York City’s LGBT synagogue, which added dignity and a certain normalcy to LGBT life at a time when neither were present. Now, she elevates the stature of the JCC with the speakers and issues she…
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Rabbis 2015 Phyllis Sommer
Through her blogs, Rabbi Phyllis Sommer has created virtual communities of Jews all over the world. Her blog, Superman Sam, told of her son’s battle with leukemia [before his death in 2013] and still raises awareness of, and funding for, pediatric cancer research. She is a brilliant, beautiful writer who can make you laugh and…
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Rabbis 2015 Nikki DeBlosi
As Nikki’s colleague at NYU, I have seen firsthand how her presence has transformed our student community. In the three years since she was hired, she’s grown our Reform student community tenfold. She is a patient, wise and rigorously pluralist educator, and has even taught a seminar on sex, love and romance in Jewish tradition….
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Rabbis 2015 Kaya Stern-Kaufman
Rabba Kaya Stern-Kaufman has brought inclusive, creative Jewish spirituality to a rural area in New England. The organization that she founded, Rimon Resource Center for Jewish Spirituality, has attracted many people who have never been affiliated with a synagogue, including non-Jews. She has offered classes in Talmud and Jewish mysticism. Rimon brings people together for…
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Rabbis 2015 Robert Dobrusin
Rabbi Robert Dobrusin changed my life. I used to be in a radical anti-Israel group that, every Saturday during services, protested outside Rabbi Dobrusin’s synagogue. After some relatives eventually convinced me to stop, I sent a letter of apology to Rabbi Dobrusin. To my amazement, he invited me to meet with him, and was kind,…
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Rabbis 2015 Mark Strauss-Cohn
Rabbi Mark Strauss-Cohn has been with Temple Emanuel since 2001. In that time, he has not only led the congregation, but has also worked tirelessly to reach out to the larger community. He is part of “A Priest and A Rabbi Walk into a Bar,” in which he and an Episcopalian priest discuss theological matters….
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Rabbis 2015 Yehuda Ferris
As a Chinese family exploring Judaism, we had been considering conversion for a while when we met Rabbi Yehuda Ferris. He welcomed us with open arms and allowed us to spend as much time with him and his family as possible, which enabled us to see what Judaism stands for through his own behavior and…
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Fast Forward Outrage ensues after a Long Island high school study guide calls Zionism ‘extreme nationalism’
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