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,…
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Community I Was Slut-Shamed By My Modern Orthodox High School For Kissing A Boy
To protect the identities of all parties involved, the author of this piece prefers to remain anonymous. To send comments to the author, email us. In ninth grade, I made out with a guy for the first time. We were both freshmen at a large Modern Orthodox Jewish high school and were somewhat friendly beforehand….
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Community Your Complete Guide To Fire Safety On Shabbat
A version of this post appeared in Rabbi Ovadia’s daily newsletter. It is important to understand the laws of putting out fire on Shabbat. There are lengthy discussions in the Mishnah, the Talmud, and Halachaic literature, which I have thoroughly analyzed below. Meanwhile, here are the essential guidelines: • Make sure fire alarms are installed…
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Yiddish World Banning Carlebach Melodies Would Be Self-Defeating
This article originally appeared in the Yiddish Forverts. As the list of accusations of sexual harassment against well-known figures continues to grow, it isn’t surprising that charges against spiritual leader and composer-singer Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach have resurfaced, leading some of his accusers to call for a ban of his melodies, many of which have become…
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Opinion How My Daughter Helped Me Realize That Women Are More Than Just Victims
I will confess that when I found out I was pregnant almost exactly seven years ago, I prayed, in my furtive post-ultra-Orthodox-atheist way, that I wasn’t having a girl. Not because the happily-every-after-formula in all the stories I’d been told as a child was “and nine months later his wife gave birth to a healthy…
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The Schmooze The New ‘Star Wars’ Isn’t Pro-Reform Judaism. It’s Anti-Religious Inflexibility.
I watched “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” this weekend because the group I was with couldn’t decide between “Call Me By Your Name” and “I, Tonya.” I did not intend to write something Jewish about “Star Wars,” just as I have not previously intended to write about Jews and sports or Jews and sex-spaghetti. Then…
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Community No, Orthodox Ritual Is Not To Blame For Tragic Fires
Today, The Forward’s esteemed Editor-at-Large, J.J. Goldberg, penned an opinion piece in response to the tragic fire in a Brooklyn home that killed an Orthodox mother and three of her children early Monday morning. The headline took me aback. “Why So Many Brooklyn Orthodox Jews Are Dying In Tragic Fires” seems to blame the victims…
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Opinion American Jews — Not Just the Orthodox — Should Join Christians in Defending Religious Liberty
In a recent piece entitled “Why are Orthodox Organizations Embracing Christian Values?” Rabbi Jill Jacobs attacked Orthodox Jews for opposing the Obama Administration’s now-rescinded health insurance mandate, which required employers to provide or be complicit in providing some abortion-inducing drugs and sterilizations. She incorrectly suggested that this position conflicts with Jewish law, suggesting that these…
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Community Ex-Haredim Cannot Save Liberal Judaism
The recent Netflix documentary One of Us — which depicts the lives and tribulations of three Jews who are attempting to or have already left Hasidic Judaism — has led several commentators to reflect on the subject of those who leave the ultra-Orthodox community. One commentator, Anshel Pfeffer, who believes that there is currently a…
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