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News Alabama Synagogue Survives Long Decline for Jews in Deep South
Temple Mishkan Israel sits on a busy four-lane road in Selma, Ala. On one side of the temple is a pink house with a bay window; a large white house is on the other side. The paint is peeling on both homes, which look like they’ve sat empty for decades. Across the street there’s a…
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News Jewish Waiter Beaten for Praising Adolf Hitler on Bronx Corner
1913 •100 years ago The Death of Elyokem Tsunzer One of the world’s most beloved Yiddish poets, Elyokem Tsunzer, has died at the age of 77. Renowned for his folksy poems, many of which were set to music and sung by millions of Jews, Tsunzer passed after laying ill for two weeks. On his deathbed,…
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Fast Forward Sukkot Pilgrims Head to Italy for Perfect Etrog
At dawn, before the summer heat starts baking the countryside, groups of bearded men with black kippas descend upon the citrus groves that dot the coast of Calabria, in southern Italy. The sight of Hasidim wandering the fields and villages in this relatively isolated Italian region could seem incongruous, since practically no Jews have lived…
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News Romemu’s Popular Rabbi and New Age Prayer Brings Growth — and Challenges
A few moments before starting to say Neilah, the haunting prayers that conclude the Yom Kippur service, Rabbi David Ingber asked an unusual question of the members of his congregation. What were they praying for? As three volunteers passed microphones into the pews, the room fell silent. Then, one person stood up. And another. And…
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Opinion How David Ingber Got ‘God Intoxicated’
Rabbi David Ingber is the spiritual leader (and main draw) for Romemu, a fast-growing congregation on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Its quest for spiritual meaning can hardly be disassociated from Ingber’s personal journey. Born and raised in a Modern Orthodox family, Ingber, 44, was drawn to ultra-Orthodoxy while on a gap-year program in Israel in…
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Fast Forward Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Criticizes Israel As ‘Occupier’
WASHINGTON – The White House said on Thursday that President Barack Obama may meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in New York next week but called for “action” rather than words from the new leader, who has sent signals he’s looking for a thaw in relations with the United States. Obama and Rouhani will be…
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The Schmooze James Franco, Paparazzo
James Franco is channeling Perez Hilton on his Instagram feed this week. The “This Is The End” star has made a collage of pictures showing him doing fairly innocuous things, complete with scandalous headlines scrawled in MS Paint. One set, captioned “James Franco in love?” shows him cuddling with another man, addressing the many jokes/rumors/quips…
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The Schmooze Why Is Sarah Silverman Wearing a Cross?
Last week, Sarah Silverman made an appearance on comedian W. Kamau Bell’s talk show, “Totally Biased.” As usual, she was wonderful. But in between quips about the James Franco roast, and how she is actually genuinely hurt by jokes about her age, one couldn’t help but zoom in on the very unusual piece of jewelry…
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Opinion Gaza is starving. Where are the American Jewish leaders?
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Music Remembering Ozzy Osbourne’s Jewish vow renewal
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Fast Forward Cuomo says key factor in his primary loss was Mamdani’s support from young, Jewish and pro-Palestinian voters
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Film & TV The new ‘Superman’ is being called anti-Israel, but does that make it pro-Palestine?
In Case You Missed It
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Opinion The US is turning a blind eye to death and devastation — it isn’t the first time
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Opinion Actually, Trump made things between Israel and Iran way worse
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Film & TV ‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’ sends The Thing to shul — and gives Jack Kirby credit
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Fast Forward As starvation mounts in Gaza, Jewish voices increasingly rise up in consternation
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