Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Orthodox Judaism, which aims for a stricter observance of halachic law than Conservative or Reform Judaism. It includes Modern Orthodox Judaism, as well as Haredi (sometimes called ultra-Orthodox) Judaism,…
Orthodox Judaism
The Latest
-
Opinion That’s Amar’e! Black Orthodox superstars making outreach to the masses
In a recent HBO special, superstar NBA player and coach Amar’e Stoudemire is seen by millions — not dunking, but davening. He followed that by making headlines in the Jewish world, announcing he’s ready for a shidduch and to remarry. Not to be outdone, another celebrity — top-selling rapper and producer Nissim Black — last…
-
News Orthodox leaders travel to Israel to lobby government against issues important to Conservative and Reform movements
A group of American and European Orthodox leaders are heading to Israel on Tuesday for a 48-hour mission to lobby the government to shelve plans that would change the status quo on religious issues that are supported by liberal Zionists and the Reform and Conservative streams of Judaism. The mission is organized by Am Echad,…
-
News No ‘Super Jewish’ district, but increased Orthodox influence in New York’s capital
Orthodox leaders are welcoming newly drawn lines that could for the first time give a member of the upstate New York community a shot at a seat in the state legislature. A new Rockland County district is the good news for Orthodox Jews looking for more representation in Washington and Albany, where the Democratically controlled…
-
Fast Forward Stereotypes say Orthodox Jews avoid mental health treatment. The science says otherwise.
A new study counters the assumption that Orthodox Jews are reluctant to seek treatment for mental illness. It also concludes that when experiencing lower grade anxiety and depression, they pursue professional help more so than the general population. Writing in this month’s issue of the journal Transcultural Psychiatry, the study’s authors note stereotypes of Orthodox…
-
Opinion I’m an Orthodox med student. My community needs real sex education
“You know, halacha (Jewish law) almost never allows contraception use,” an acquaintance boldly asserted to me recently. More than factually erroneous, the statement belied a misguided attempt to fill a void. In the absence of proper education, he had formed a lopsided picture of Judaism that would inform his personal moral code. This is not…
-
Yiddish World Orthodox songwriter Yossi Desser debuts album of Yiddish Hanukkah carols
It’s that time of year again: no matter which supermarket you enter or storefront you pass by, it’s the same old Christmas carols on the PA system. But what if you heard them in Yiddish, celebrating Hanukkah instead? It may sound gimmicky but in his debut album, “Yiddish Hanukkah Carols”, Orthodox singer-songwriter Yossi Desser has…
-
Culture With #MyOrthodoxLife, religious women say Netflix doesn’t speak for them
It looked like a pretty ordinary Instagram post: a smiling woman in a trendy periwinkle dress, posed against a background of roses. But Alex Fleksher, the woman in the picture, was on a mission. She wanted people to know that plenty of women “are leading happy, healthy, and fulfilled Orthodox lives,” she wrote. “I’m a…
-
Yiddish World The Yiddish professor and female Orthodox rabbi sharing Yiddish children’s literature with the world
Read this article in Yiddish A jack of many trades is sometimes a master of them all Speaking with Miriam Udel, the Yiddish professor at Emory University in Atlanta who is reacquainting the world with Yiddish children’s literature, you quickly notice something remarkable. In one moment she sounds like a literary scholar and in the…
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Ye debuts ‘Heil Hitler’ music video that includes a sample of a Hitler speech
- 2
Opinion Israel is becoming a pariah state. Here’s what American Jews must do.
- 3
News ‘He was a mensch’: Slain Messianic Jew remembered as bridge-builder
- 4
Opinion We must face reality — the Gaza war is now a war of annihilation
In Case You Missed It
-
Culture Why are Christian influencers promoting Jesus mezuzahs?
-
Fast Forward Texas may soon require schools to post the Ten Commandments. Meet the Jewish lawmaker fighting back.
-
Fast Forward French parliamentary committee unanimously votes to posthumously promote Alfred Dreyfus
-
Fast Forward Elise Stefanik says Harvard pro-Palestinian activist should lose federally-funded scholarship
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism