Opinion

• Opinion

  This Is What Jewish Democracy Looks Like

  If you really want to get a handle on the troubles dogging Israel’s relationship with the Jewish Diaspora, look no further than the World Zionist Congress, which opened with great fanfare in Jerusalem on June 15 and limped to a whimpering close two days later. You talk about two Jews and three opinions? This brawl…

  By J.J. Goldberg

  4 min read
• Opinion

  The Haredi Challenge

  The State of Israel is faced with so many existential challenges, from within and without, that it is foolhardy to privilege one above another, especially from afar. But the continued, passionate defiance of secular law and government authority by ultra-Orthodox Jews is quickly posing a serious threat to the very nature of Israeli democracy. In…

  Jun 23, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Sentencing Rubashkin

  As much as this newspaper has worked to highlight the abuses at the kosher meat company once owned by the Rubashkin family, the sentencing of Sholom Rubashkin to 27 years in prison for bank fraud is troubling. The lengthy sentence with no chance of parole, handed down in federal court on June 22, is too…

  Jun 22, 2010 | 2 min read

Columnists View All

• Jodi Rudoren This is my last column as editor of the Forward

  

• Jay Michaelson American Jews were played — now what?

  

• Rob Eshman There’s a shocking new report on civilian deaths in Gaza. If only it were accurate.

  

• Nora Berman Is Netflix’s new show the most Jewish cartoon ever?

  

• Dan Perry Israel’s new gift to the far right could help end the Gaza war

  

• Emily Tamkin Entering motherhood — and an obsession with the works of an Italian Jewish literary hero

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  Two Israels, Never Further Apart

  This article took up the front page of the main section of Friday’s Yediot Ahronot, bordered by photos of the two opposing events described. It’s by Sima Kadmon, Yediot’s lead political commentator. The mention of “the parents of Emmanuel” refers to 23 couples living an urban settlement in the West Bank, populated entirely by Haredim,…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jun 20, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  The ‘Revival’ Is Over, Let’s Talk Continuity

  In 1979, when Henry Sapoznik founded the klezmer band Kapelye, he was among a cohort of passionate young musicians, musicologists and cultural workers who sought to reclaim Eastern European Jewish music and link themselves to still-living masters of that tradition. It was hard work. Relatively little had been done to preserve or transmit the culture…

  By Rokhl Kafrissen Jun 16, 2010 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  The Mameloshn Is Still a Mother Tongue

  Don’t believe anyone who tells you that Yiddish is dead or dying. Nothing could be further from the truth. Yiddish lives and is thriving. The number of its speakers increases from year to year. Its speakers are proud of their language, and they identify strongly with it. Of course, the Yiddish speakers of today look…

  By Zelda Kahan Newman Jun 16, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  A Relationship Cannot Live by Yelling Alone

  It turns out that the relationship between Israel and the American Jewish Diaspora is a lot like the weather. Everybody talks about it, but nobody does anything about it. Lately, though, something has changed. Like the weather, the relationship is getting overheated, and so is the talk. Analysis and invective are gushing forth in torrents,…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jun 16, 2010 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Reading Between the Criticisms

  What’s wrong with the following assertions? • Israel is a wholly legitimate state, long-established and internationally recognized. It is not going away, nor should it. The United States was not “illegitimate” back when its laws and its customs were racist, nor even when slavery was legally sanctioned. Like its policies or not, Israel’s legitimacy is…

  By Leonard Fein Jun 16, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  The Flotilla Probe

  Whatever the rest of the world might have thought, the State Department gave a cautious thumbs-up to Israel’s June 13 announcement of an inquiry into the deadly raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara. Department spokesman Philip Crowley called the probe “an important step forward” toward the “transparent, impartial and credible” inquiry demanded by the…

  Jun 16, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  After Yoffie

  Leaders of the Union for Reform Judaism have a tall order to fill as they seek a successor to their president, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, who has announced plans to retire in two years. Nominally, they’ll be looking for someone to helm a confederation of some 900 synagogues. In practice, the job is much bigger. The…

  Jun 16, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Rabbi Yoffie’s Legacy: ‘Old Ideas’ for Reform Judaism

  In announcing that he will retire from the presidency of the Union for Reform Judaism in two years, Rabbi Eric Yoffie said that he aimed to give the URJ “ample time” to search for his successor. It’s a good thing, too. That search will require careful thought. Given the longevity of those tasked with leading…

  By Jonathan D. Sarna Jun 16, 2010 | 3 min read