Opinion

• Opinion

  A Tale of Two Cases: Why a Christian Club Matters More Than a Desert Cross

  Late last month, the Supreme Court announced one of its least important decisions ever in the jurisprudence of “church and state.” One can make this assertion because no matter how the high court ruled, the constitutional order was never imperiled by a cross atop a hill in the Mojave Desert. Nine days before handing down…

  By Nathan J. Diament

  4 min read
• Opinion

  That Which Is Great and Good, and Obscured by Scandal

  It is a rather strange thing to say these days, but I have long been a fan of the Catholic Church. That does not mean I am drawn to its theology, attracted by its ritual or indifferent to its moral and political lapses — and worse — over the centuries. Nor does it mean I…

  By Leonard Fein May 5, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  In Jerusalem, Utopian Hopes and Flawed Realities

  Let’s be clear: Dividing Jerusalem would be the most dangerous gamble taken by the Jews in 2,000 years. As we mark another Jerusalem Day, with the attention of the world fixed on the holy city, we should all take a careful look at the profound implications of such a decision. First, we need to remove…

  By Yaacov Lozowick May 5, 2010 | 3 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

  Palestinian Terror Wanes, but Fear Remains

  On May 3, just two days before Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations were to resume through American mediation, Israel’s deputy foreign minister appeared alongside the head of a right-wing research organization at a press conference in Jerusalem to release new evidence that the Palestinians are not, in fact, ready for peace. It’s what you might call a…

  By J.J. Goldberg May 5, 2010 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Conversion Kabuki

  The latest round of shuttle diplomacy on the vexing issue of conversion to Judaism in Israel has left us wondering whether there can ever be a compromise on an issue this fundamental and, therefore, this divisive. There certainly has been welcome movement. When Knesset member David Rotem made the rounds of meetings with American Jewish…

  May 5, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Invest in Families

  The consulting group Advancing Women Professionals and the Jewish Community, led by the indefatigable Shifra Bronznick, is persuading, training, cajoling and exhorting American Jewish organizations to adopt family-friendly policies. The goal: 100 sign-ups in 2010. Since only 35% of Jewish communal organizations have paid maternity-leave policies, even though three-quarters of their workforce is female, reaching…

  May 5, 2010 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Shared Values

  Let’s talk about Jewish values. I don’t mean the oft-cited “shared values” that tie Israel and America together. As every American president and every Israeli prime minister has said, the relationship between the two nations is rooted in more than strategic convenience; it is informed by the values the two nations hold in common. A…

  By Leonard Fein Apr 28, 2010 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  How To Get to Two States From Here

  Support Fayyad’s State-Building Effort By Yossi Alpher The best way to advance prospects for a two-state solution is to support Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s program to put in place the institutional infrastructure of a Palestinian state. The alternatives pale in comparison. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas hold views and…

  By Amjad Atallah, and David Makovsky, and Scott B. Lasensky, and Steven J. Rosen, and Yossi Alpher, and Zalman Shoval Apr 28, 2010 | 8 min read
• Opinion

  How Much Immigration Is Too Much?

  Arizona’s law requiring police officers to check the residency status of those they suspect of being illegal immigrants has drawn swift condemnation from a motley group, ranging from The Wall Street Journal to unions. National Jewish groups have also weighed in with statements blasting the law. But critics of the state’s law should think twice…

  By Noam Neusner Apr 28, 2010 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Look Who’s Speaking for America’s Jews

  The easing of the current Washington-Jerusalem face-off — may it come speedily — could lead to numerous possible combinations of winners and losers. President Obama could squeeze Prime Minister Netanyahu until his government falls. Netanyahu could drag his feet until 2012 and hope Obama isn’t reelected. They might even agree on a peace formula that…

  By J.J. Goldberg Apr 28, 2010 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  A Lesson From Brandeis

  Grumbling about a commencement speaker is almost a rite of passage on many a college campus, the choice so inevitably drawing complaints from one aggrieved group or another that it is best not to make too much of it. But the criticism directed at Brandeis University for selecting Michael Oren, the Israeli ambassador to the…

  Apr 28, 2010 | 2 min read