Rosh Hashanah is more than a week away, but Barack Obama drew upon the High Holy Days themes of renewal and rededication in a conference call with more than 900 rabbis. “I know that for rabbis this is the busiest time of the year as you prepare for the High Holy Days,” the Democratic presidential…
When Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb took the reins at the Orthodox Union in 2002, observers took note of the fact that the new executive vice-president of the centrist congregational umbrella group was fond of wearing a black hat of the sort popular in more religiously right-leaning precincts. Now that Weinreb is wrapping up his tenure,…
It took only three weeks, but finally PM Olmert’s office responded to the Orthodox Union’s letter voicing the group’s concern over talk about dividing Jerusalem. Olmert’s letter promises that the “issue of Jerusalem is currently not under negotiations with the Palestinians” and that in any future settlement, the PM will “strengthen the Jewish character of…
“Absolutely marvelous news in the world of vodka!” read a press release issued by the Orthodox Union late last month. In what the group called an “absolutely significant” move, the O.U. announced that six products in the Absolut Vodka line had received kosher certification and that the O.U. symbol soon will be gracing the vodka’s…
