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
The Latest
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News Orthodox Jews quietly defy coronavirus restrictions to celebrate last of the High Holidays
Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn proceeded with some indoor and outdoor holiday celebrations in their synagogues over the weekend, in defiance of restrictions limiting all religious gatherings to 10 or fewer people in neighborhoods where the rates of coronavirus infection have gone sharply up in recent weeks. On Saturday evening in Borough Park — a neighborhood…
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News Ahead of Simchat Torah street parties, mayor says NYPD not sure how to enforce new health rules
The New York City Police Department does not know how it will enforce new state restrictions on religious gatherings just days before Simchat Torah, a holiday typically celebrated in Orthodox communities with massive dance parties that spill onto the street. “The lawyers all have to get on the same page, and the NYPD has to…
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News Cuomo, pointing finger at Orthodox community, will shut down schools in virus hotspots
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued a striking challenge to leaders in the Orthodox Jewish community on Monday, demanding that they comply with state rules capping attendance at religious gatherings and enforce mask wearing in order to avoid a total shutdown of religious institutions. The challenge came after the governor announced that, effective Tuesday, he…
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Fast Forward ‘Pray for the wholeness of the nation!’ Orthodox social media groups pray for Trump
An image circulating in Orthodox social media groups is calling on Orthodox Jews to pray for a speedy recovery for President Donald Trump who announced that he and his wife Melania tested positive for COVID-19 in the early hours of Friday morning. “Oh pray for the wholeness of the nation!” says the image in Hebrew,…
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Community Orthodox children need access to a secular education
Silence is complicity. These words rang out over the past few months as we watched the Movement for Black Lives Matter take to the streets to demand change in our society. These words are still ringing in my head as I approach the holidays this year and prepare myself for 10 days of reflection and…
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News Some of L.A.’s Orthodox day schools set to reopen—as ‘camps’
With Los Angeles County banning even private schools from opening because of the coronavirus pandemic biting into the fall semester, at least four Orthodox day schools in the area have found a way to legally bring students to campus. They are calling it camp. The schools have opened or plan to open soon for optional…
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Fast Forward Questions grow over record stock gift to obscure Brooklyn synagogue
A little-known Brooklyn synagogue was the recipient last month of what may be the one of the largest personal donations to a religious organization in American history. But instead of celebrations over such a large contribution amid the bleak financial landscape of Jewish communal life, questions are being raised over the nature of the payment….
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Community Why isn’t climate change a bigger issue for the Orthodox?
Why have Orthodox Jews been so slow to commit to the struggle against climate change? The Pope and the Islamic Society of North America have spoken up about it. In January, Renewal Rabbi Arthur Waskow’s Shalom Center issued a statement with more than 500 rabbinic signees, and this spring, Reform Rabbi Jennie Rosenn launched Dayenu:…
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