Opinion

• Opinion

  Shavuot: The Zeppo Marx of Jewish Holidays

  Of all the major Jewish holidays, the least familiar to the general, synagogue-avoiding Jewish public is the festival of Shavuot, which commences Tuesday evening, May 18. In fact, its obscurity is so striking that discussions of the holiday commonly start by noting its obscurity, as I did. As a result, it’s probably best known for…

  By J.J. Goldberg

  4 min read
• Letters

  May 21, 2010

  Government Shouldn’t Fund Discrimination Nathan Diament’s argument that religious freedom is jeopardized if the Supreme Court refuses to allow public funding of a Christian club at a public school is deeply flawed (“A Tale of Two Cases: Why A Christian Club Matters More Than a Desert Cross,” May 14). While Diament is right that people…

  May 12, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Kagan the Conciliator

  In the days since President Obama nominated Elena Kagan to become the next new justice of the Supreme Court, much has been made of her paltry paper trail and her long-standing reluctance to take forceful stands on controversial legal issues. She’s been described as a brilliant, but blank, slate. “[W]here, precisely, has Ms. Kagan been…

  May 12, 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

  Days of Rocks and Guns

  The 40th anniversary of the Kent State killings of four unarmed students was commemorated earlier this month, a seminal moment for many of us who came of age during an unpopular war and mounting civic strife. But it’s worth noting that the violence of that bloody spring did not end in Ohio. It spread all…

  By Jane Eisner May 12, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Why Christian Zionists Really Support Israel

  On May 23, pastors, ministers and priests at more than 1,500 churches in all 50 states and over 50 foreign countries will dedicate their Sunday services to teaching the importance of Christian support for Israel. On that day — the second annual Christians United for Israel Sunday — church leaders will speak to their congregants…

  By John C. Hagee May 12, 2010 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  How Many Jews Does It Take To Light Up a High Court Firestorm?

  Does anybody care if there are three Jewish justices on the Supreme Court? We’re about to find out. The first few hours since Elena Kagan’s nomination have seen a low-grade but steady buzz about the court’s religious balance that sort of dances around the topic. This Washington Post blog leads off with the absence of…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 10, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Words and Music: The Unknown History of ‘Hava Nagila’

  Here’s a delightful little clip that examines the meaning and roots of Hava Nagila as mythic folk tune, originally a wordless nigun of the Sadagora Hasidim, and reality as an artful 20th century pop-composition by seminal musicologist Avraham Zvi Idelson that somehow crept under our skin and into our consciousness until hardly anybody remembers anymore…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 10, 2010 | < 1 min read
• Opinion

  Showdown Over Orthodox ‘Control’ in 5 Towns School Board Vote

  Voters in the Long Island village of Lawrence go to the polls on Tuesday, March 12, in highly-charged school board election that pits a slate of three Orthodox Jewish incumbents against a slate of challengers including a non-Orthodox Jew and two non-Jews. The seven-member board currently includes six Orthodox Jews. The village of Lawrence had…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 10, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Superspook Richard Clarke: What Not To Do When Terrorists Strike

  Richard Clarke, the counter-terrorism chief of the Clinton-era National Security Council, has been more right more times about the nature of upcoming terrorist threats than just about anyone else. He’s got an important op-ed essay about the failed Times Square and Detroit-bound underwear bombers and what they should tell us about the next phase of…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 9, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Meet the Liebermans: Wherever You Go, We’re Ready To Revoke Your Citizenship

  What we have here is the sort of coincidence — if coincidence it is — that I’m supposed to introduce with some witty throwaway line, something like “Coincidence? Or something more? You be the judge!” This one is just too weird, though. I’m speechless. So I’ll just report. You decide. Here’s Senator Joseph Lieberman of…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 6, 2010 | < 1 min read
• 
  Opinion

  An Ordination First, and What Followed

  Twenty-five years ago, when I received my rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary, I was well aware of the historic nature of the occasion. On May 14, 1985, I became the first woman ordained in the Conservative movement, but I also knew that the path leading to this milestone was paved by many people….

  By Amy Eilberg May 5, 2010 | 4 min read