This is 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
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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News The Democratic primary for NYC mayor is over. Meet the Republican challenger.
The votes are still being counted to determine the winner of Tuesday’s Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, with Eric Adams enjoying a lead in the first round of the ranked-choice race. But the Republican primary is decided. Meet Curtis Sliwa, the brash founder of the Guardian Angels, a citizen group that has…
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Fast Forward For Orthodox voters choosing the next mayor, it’s Adams or Yang — or both
A slow stream of voters were headed to the polls in the Borough Park neighborhood of Brooklyn on Tuesday in what many say is a test of the Orthodox community’s historic influence in New York City. Posters hung up on poles across the neighborhood overnight urged people to participate in the primary. “We have to…
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News Leading NYC mayoral candidates make their final pitches to Jewish voters
As they crisscrossed the five boroughs in the final days and hours before Tuesday’s primary, leading candidates for mayor made their final pitches to Jewish voters, an often key constituency in New York elections. Scott Stringer, the city’s comptroller, rallied with Jewish supporters on the Upper West Side on Saturday; Maya Wiley, a former counsel…
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News In final stretch, Eric Adams and Andrew Yang ramp up efforts to increase share of Orthodox vote
Eric Adams and Andrew Yang, two of the leading candidates for mayor of New York City, have stepped up their get-out-the-vote efforts in the Orthodox community in Brooklyn as early voting in the June 22 Democratic primary is underway. Both campaigns are touting their commitments to work with the community, protect its rights and enhance…
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Opinion I run The Jewish Theological Seminary. Here’s the real story about President Isaac Herzog speaking at our commencement
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Yiddish אַ רעפֿעראַט אויף ייִדיש אין מינכן פֿונעם ליטעראַטור־פֿאָרשער נתן כּהן A Yiddish lecture in Munich by literature scholar Nathan Cohen
די „שלום־עליכם לעקציע“ וועט מען קענען הערן אויפֿן אָרט אָדער דורך דער אינטערנעץ.