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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The Schmooze Vodka Ad Too Sexy For Brooklyn Hasidic Community
Is a bikini-clad bum offensive? Does a clothed booty constitute an “inappropriate” image? Probably not in hip-hop videos, vacation ads or swimwear promotions. But on the side of a New York City Transit bus that travels through heavily Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods, it’s a different story, a crusading rabbi says. And the Metropolitan Transportation Authority seems…
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The Schmooze ‘Michael Jackson of Jewish Music’ Headed to Jail
Michoel Streicher, a 50-year-old mentally ill Orthodox cantor who was popular (in certain circles) in the 1990s and calls himself “The Michael Jackson of Jewish music,” was sentenced yesterday to one to three years in prison for stealing $36,000 from a fan, according to the Daily News. The victim, 55-year-old Judy Burstein, gave Streicher the…
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The Schmooze Marijuana Kingpin Lived With His Orthodox Parents
Looks like we’ve got true-life sequel material for “Holy Rollers,” the just-released film in which a young Orthodox Jew gets lured into drug running. Bail was denied Thursday for Jonathan Braun, the 27-year-old Staten Island boychik accused of smuggling more than 100,000 kilos of marijuana from Canada into the U.S. — all while living with…
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The Schmooze Court Rules Catholic Woman Has To Raise Stepson as Orthodox Jew
Divorce is never easy, and mixing in the rules of Orthodox Judaism certainly doesn’t make it easier. But that’s precisely what happened when Laura Derbigney became entangled in a custody battle between her Catholic husband and his Jewish ex-wife over the ex-couple’s 7-year-old son. Derbigney, a Chicago resident, is being forced by a court to…
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The Schmooze Nigerian Yiddish Speaker Charged With Fraud Jumps Bail
John Star, a Yiddish-speaking Nigerian national, has jumped bail after being charged with mortgage fraud, the New York Daily News reported today. Star learned Yiddish as a child from his adoptive parents who were Orthodox Jews and raised him in Switzerland. Apparently his Yiddish came in handy when committing mortgage fraud in New York. “He…
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Opinion Showdown Over Orthodox ‘Control’ in 5 Towns School Board Vote
Voters in the Long Island village of Lawrence go to the polls on Tuesday, March 12, in highly-charged school board election that pits a slate of three Orthodox Jewish incumbents against a slate of challengers including a non-Orthodox Jew and two non-Jews. The seven-member board currently includes six Orthodox Jews. The village of Lawrence had…
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Life Sexual Dysfunction Is a By-Product of Treating the Body as Treyf
There is more to say about sexual health in the religious Jewish community than I could in this earlier post, about a new book designed to help Orthodox parents talk with their children about the topic. I am certain that there are plenty of sexually happy couples, and I know for sure that there are…
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Life Sex and Women’s Pleasure Debated in the Orthodox Sphere
It seems that sex is on everyone’s minds this week. (“Just this week?” The cynic replied.) It’s not just on The Sisterhood that sexuality in Jewish life became a focus, but also elsewhere on the Jewish Web. Asimon, “Israel’s Women’s Site,” for example, announced that in honor of “May is Masturbation Month,” they are holding…
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