Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
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Opinion We will – we must – gather again. One day.
Previous Article Next Article On November 18, 1656, Jacob Zahalon, a rabbi and a doctor, stood in an apartment in an Italian ghetto, shouting out a window to deliver his Hannukah sermon. Below him stood a number of Jews, unable to enter the synagogue. Why? The bubonic plague was afflicting the community, and no one…
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Opinion Fewer barriers, more intimacy
Previous Article Next Article It was during the first weekend of the lockdown that I attended my first online bat mitzvah. I happened to be at my computer during Shacharit services when Facebook notified me that my congregation was going live. As I watched, notifications popped up as my friends and contacts tuned in. As…
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Opinion Some koved for covid
Previous Article Next Article Like a favorite bra or gentlemen’s truss, Yiddishland during the pandemic continues to offer this Yiddish-head the greatest uplift, providing some virtual koved during covid. Given shelter at home rules, you’d think a Yiddish svive (reading group) might be the first casualty. We usually gear up with a nice selection of…
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Opinion Russian Jews have been preparing for this crisis our whole lives
Previous Article Next Article It’s hard to resist employing the kind of cynical Jewish humor that Russian-speaking Jews know so well when speaking with Americans. If you’re asked a question you don’t want to answer, well, be a clever Jew and respond back with your own question. I successfully resisted the urge when my editor…
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News Defying the governor but heeding the President, a Los Angeles synagogue opens its doors
Mere hours after President Donald Trump called on governors to open places of worship, calling the institutions “essential,” one Los Angeles congregation pounced on the opportunity. In defiance of a California state ban on religious gatherings due to the potential spread of coronavirus, it opened for Friday night services. Members of Congregation Etz Chaim, an…
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Community A paean to camp: ‘I was a NFTY kid’
I am watching faded, ghostly but joyously animated images on my screen — a screen larger than that of any TV we might have owned in the summer of 1966 when my father shot this film with his new Super 8mm movie camera. There are boys in crisp white shirts and pressed trousers, many of…
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Fast Forward Trump says he’ll open houses of worship as ‘essential’ — but he can’t do that
In a surprise announcement Friday afternoon President Donald Trump said he was deeming houses of worship “essential,” and said he would “override” governors if they push back on the designation — echoing a prior claim about his “total authority” over states that he abandoned. Trump can try to use political persuasion to sway the states,…
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Life How my grandfather prepared me to lose him
On May 21, my beloved grandfather, Morris Silberstein, passed away at 100. His favorite activities included carpentry, listening to the opera, and periodically informing the German government he was still alive and that his bank account deposit information was up to date. As far as I know, he was not infected with the coronavirus that…
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Fast Forward Trump says Jews would deserve much of the blame if he loses
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Opinion This GOP candidate has always been antisemitic — so why are Republicans only panicking about him now?
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Culture Hitler is trending on TikTok again — and they’re trying to make him seem like a nice guy
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Opinion A daring attack on Hezbollah may reveal Israel’s strengths — and its most terrifying weakness
In Case You Missed It
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Fast Forward Mayor of Muslim-majority Michigan city endorses Trump, in new sign of Gaza war’s influence on presidential race
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Fast Forward Antisemitic incidents jumped 63% in 2023, according to FBI data
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Opinion Not just Trump: Antisemitism is pervasive in the Republican Party
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Fast Forward Springfield, Ohio, rabbi will meet with local Haitian leaders after disparaging community
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