Dear Jane, In the last line in your op ed on Monday entitled “Family is a Jewish Value Don’t let the Mistakes of a Few Rob us of that Gift,” you write, “My children — and now, my grandchildren — are the greatest joy in my life. Why wouldn’t I want everyone to share that…
Dear Editor, I have followed with interest the debate in these pages over recent weeks between the secular Einat Wilf and Ram Vromen and the Reform Rabbi Gilad Kariv over the proper place for Reform and Conservative Judaism in Israeli society. While each of the authors make several valid points, they all have several blind…
Dear Editor, I recently read Jane Eisner’s Forward editorial, “Is There A Future For Jews Without Judaism?.” I never thought that I was that hardcore of a Conservative, but upon reading the piece, I could not help having a definite response. I could not figure out why anyone who ditched the Jewish religion entirely would…
Less than two weeks ago, an article published in Tablet Magazine suggested that Julia Salazar, a candidate for the New York State Senate, lied about her Jewish and political past. Since then, other reports have also called into question her immigrant experience and class background. As friends and colleagues of Julia’s during her time at…
Dear Editor, Sandra Tamari’s recent article in these pages, “Peter Beinart’s Interrogation Signals The End Of Liberal Zionism,” was a well-written piece that I hated with the fire of one thousand suns. I didn’t really understand why the piece was hung on the recent Peter Beinart article about his experience being interrogated by Israel. Removing…
In 1992, when I was the first woman ordained in the State of Israel, I was an oddity at best. This year, we ordained our 100th Israeli Reform rabbi, and they are serving communities and institutions all over Israel. Over 25 years later, my daughter, a native born Israeli, great granddaughter of the founders of…
In their article from Aug 8, Einat Wilf and Ram Vromen write that the attempt to “import” liberal Judaism to Israel is a mistake on the part of American Jewry. It is important to note they write from the perspective of ones opposed to all religious efforts and as “believers” in a totally secular life….
A useful rule of thumb when reading op-ed articles suggests that if the title could also serve as the title of an op-ed piece presenting a diametrically opposite point of view, then the article is interesting and worth reading. Just as importantly, though, such titles should also make us approach the article with a healthy…
On July 9, Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg concluded in this magazine that progressives do not have to engage Trump supporters. In her article, she argues that Trump is so pervasively evil that talking will do no good — or take so long that engaging with Trump is a waste of time. Rabbi Ruttenberg here falsely compares…
Dear Editor, I must, with respect, differ from my friend Alan Dowty, who argued against defining Israel as a Jewish State. While I strongly disagree with much of the recently Knesset-passed Nation-State Bill, especially its denigration of the role of the Arabic language in Israel and its claim that a united Jerusalem is the capital…
Last April, passage of the New York State budget was delayed by a state senator’s contending there ought to be a separate, and weaker, standard for educating some children attending New York State’s non-public schools. For decades, New York State required all school age children to be provided with a comparable program of instruction whether…
100% of profits support our journalism
