Opinion

• Opinion

  Making the Case for the Big Tent Federation

  Over the past several decades, federations have lost their place as the centerpiece of our communities. We believe that revitalizing them is critical for the Jewish future. In fact, we would argue that the current organizing model does not serve us well. A scattered community without any kind of overall framework is a recipe for…

  By George T. Caplan and Steven Windmueller

  3 min read
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  Opinion

  Does Church Vote Signal BDS Tipping Point?

  It is an uphill battle for a social movement to bring about change, but once a tipping point is reached in public opinion, the victories come quickly. After decades of activism, the gay rights movement won a historic victory last week with the Supreme Court’s decision that same-sex marriage is a constitutional right. Not very…

  By Seth Morrison Jul 1, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  A Fast After Fireworks: The 17th of Tammuz

  Summer sadness. The contradiction in that sentence is the crux of the next holiday – the 17th of Tammuz (Shivah Asar b’Tammuz)– which marks the breach of the walls of Jerusalem before the Temple’s final destruction three weeks later on Tisha B’av, the mother of all mourning. Of course, this summer has provided so much…

  By Abigail Pogrebin Jul 1, 2015 | 4 min read

Columnists View All

• Jay Michaelson What can really be done to prevent antisemitic attacks like Bondi Beach?

  

• Rob Eshman Australia shooting terrifies Jews worldwide — and strengthens the case for Israel

  

• Nora Berman Did crypto-Jews invent the modern tarot deck?

  

• Dan Perry The 3 responses to the Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack that could make Jews safer

  

• Emily Tamkin The fundamental miscalculation behind the GOP’s antisemitism crisis

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  It’s a ‘Hall of Mirrors’ — But Iran Nuclear Deal Is Good as It Gets

  As the Iranian nuclear negotiations pass yet another deadline, the process increasingly looks less like a diplomatic exercise than a trip through a hall of mirrors. Nothing is what it seems. Hardliners on each side keep painting the other side as a bunch of liars, either to expose the negotiations as a fraud or to…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jul 1, 2015 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Did Michael Oren Concoct Haiti Earthquake ‘Kick in Chest’?

  (JTA) — It’s a compelling hero-takes-the-fall narrative: Valiant little country takes the lead in rescuing a battered people and gets snubbed when it’s time for kudos. It’s the picture Michael Oren, the former Israeli ambassador to the U.S., paints of Israel’s 2010 Haiti rescue operation in “Ally,” his book excoriating President Barack Obama’s treatment of Israel….

  By Ron Kampeas Jun 30, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Worst Way To Protest Gay Pride? It’s Called Jewish Ethnic Drag.

  What’s the best way for Orthodox Jews to protest a bunch of gay drag queens? By transforming a bunch of Mexican laborers into ethnic drag queens — for a fee. That, apparently, is the belief of the Jewish Political Action Committee, supposedly a fringe group (see update below) of Brooklyn-based Hasids whose unusual protest strategy…

  By Sigal Samuel Jun 29, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  The Bitter Irony of Leon Wieseltier’s Outrage at Michael Oren

  Though I have long admired Leon Wieseltier’s gift for irony, I had not appreciated the sacrifices he makes for his art. I had not dreamed that, in the service of comic inversion, the former literary editor of The New Republic was prepared not only to skewer contradictions but, when they were in short supply, to…

  By Raphael Magarik Jun 29, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  I’m an Orthodox Rabbi and I Celebrate Supreme Court’s Gay Marriage Ruling

  On Friday, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that it is unconstitutional for a state to ban same-sex marriage. The issue still divides America, though the latest Pew numbers say 54% of Americans are in favor of gay marriage and only 36% oppose. In the Orthodox Jewish community, the matter is far less…

  By Eliyahu Fink Jun 29, 2015 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Dear Israel, America Is Our Queer Jewish Homeland

  When the Supreme Court ruled in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage across the United States on Friday, I was quite happy. Though it’s hardly the end of the struggle to better the lives of queer people across the United States, that ruling was a pretty big step in the right direction. As I am a…

  By Jonathan Paul Katz Jun 29, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Students Are Turning to BDS

  Sheldon Adelson’s recently convened conference to counter the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement is significant not because it defines a new era in the BDS conversation, but because it helps underline the reasons that the establishment Jewish community is losing the BDS debate. I’ve spent the past five years building relationships with students and campus…

  By Ira Stup Jun 29, 2015 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Living a Reform Life, but Coveting Orthodoxy

  When I was 14 I went on a retreat and had my first experience with Orthodox Judaism. I was mesmerized by one of the co-leaders. Ellen spoke softly; she wore corduroy jumpers in the summer, and she looked so dedicated and at peace when she prayed. We all spent four days dancing, telling stories, having…

  By Neilia Sherman Jun 27, 2015 | 4 min read