Sesame Hamentashn: Burt & Arnie, the Purimman’s Friends
Bert and Ernie, as portrayed by Burt (Visotzky) and Arnie (Eisen), have fun arguing over who’s got the bigger Hamentash.
Coincidentally or no, one is an ordained rabbi, former PBS star, friend of Bill Moyers and author of an unlikely hot-selling 1997 re-examination of Genesis. The other is a professor of the sociology of religion, friend of Steven Cohen and author of a modestly selling 2000 re-examination of the Torah. On the other hand, one is the Appleman Professor of Midrash and Interreligious Studies and director of the Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies at the Jewish Theological Seminary. The other runs the Jewish Theological Seminary. Guess who gets the bigger Hamentash? See how they handle the allocation of their uneven assets.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
