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
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News Was Terror Compensation Cash Diverted to Orthodox Yeshivas?
Thirty years after U.S. serviceman Kenneth Welch was killed in a Beirut suicide bombing by a terrorist group believed to be linked to Iran, a multimillion-dollar payout from seized Iranian assets seemed finally in sight. Welch’s brother, Michael Welch, wanted to thank the man he credited with this success: Michael Engelberg. Engelberg’s work was not…
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News How Mario Cuomo Won Over Both Orthodox and Secular Jews
(JTA) — Mario Cuomo, the three-term New York governor who died Thursday, was the rare politician who appealed to the Jewish tent’s opposite poles. A strident liberal with a nuanced understanding of the sense of vulnerability among the deeply religious in a secular society, Cuomo died of heart failure just hours after his son Andrew…
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Fast Forward Orthodox Union Launches Push for Millions in Funding for New York Yeshivas
(JTA) — The Orthodox Union is launching a multimillion-dollar advocacy campaign to increase government funding for Jewish day schools in New York. The organization will be adding staff to the 10 full-timers already working on the issue and launching a multi-year campaign, according to its executive vice president, Allen Fagin. He also said the O.U….
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News For Poker Maven Ari Engel, Yarmulke Is Ultimate Secret Weapon
(JTA) — Ari Engel is homeless. It’s been a decade since he last held a regular job and two years since he gave up his apartment. But don’t shed any tears for him. Over the last 10 years or so, Engel has grossed about $5 million playing poker. The son of an Orthodox rabbi, Engel,…
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Fast Forward N.Y. Hasidic Lawmaker Aron Wieder Gets ‘ISIS’ Threat Letter
Federal authorities are investigating a threatening photo sent to a Hasidic lawmaker in suburban New York. Aron Wieder, a Democrat who is majority leader of the Rockland County Legislature, received a photo last week in the mail showing his head pasted on the body of a person beheaded by the Islamic State jihadist group. The…
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Israel News Turning Shabbat Into Front in War on Secular Jews
(Haaretz) — There really shouldn’t be anything controversial about a traditional Jewish Friday night dinner. After all, a nice meal with a blessing over candles, wine, and challah bread never hurt anybody. Even secular Israelis who don’t find traditional Jewish practice their cup of tea, or simply embrace the idea of Friday night as “family…
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The Schmooze It Was an Un-Orthodox Year
Photo copyright George Baier Books by and about Jews who leave Orthodoxy have been around for years now — centuries, really — but in 2014 they reached a critical mass. With new memoirs by Leah Vincent and Deborah Feldman, an academic study by Lynn Davidman, and scores of essays, articles, films, profiles and trend pieces,…
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Fast Forward 7 Orthodox Groups Back Muslim Headscarf Suit
Seven national Orthodox Jewish groups filed a Supreme Court brief in favor of a Muslim woman’s right to wear a head scarf at work. The brief was filed by attorney Nathan Lewin of Lewin & Lewin, LLP of Washington D.C. for a case that is expected to be heard in February or March of next…
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