Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of rabbis, the spiritual leaders of Jewish congregations.
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Fast Forward Extremist Settlers Clash With Rabbis Over Palestinian Olive Groves on West Bank
Jewish settlers clashed with activists of the Rabbis for Human Rights movement near the West Bank city of Hebron on Friday as they protected Palestinians beginning the annual olive harvest. Israeli police and soldiers grappled with settlers who tried to drive off local Palestinians and international supporters of Palestinian rights in the West Bank. “This…
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Fast Forward First Woman Rabbi Recalled at Terezin Camp
A memorial plaque to Regina Jonas, the first female rabbi, was unveiled at the former Nazi concentration camp Terezin in the Czech Republic. Several female rabbis from Jonas’ native Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States — notably Sally Priesand, who in 1972 became the first American female rabbi — attended Thursday’s ceremony in…
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Fast Forward Extremist Rabbi Issues Ruling Saying Jewish Law Permits Destruction of Gaza
Rabbi Dov Lior, a leading West Bank rabbi who endorsed a book justifying the killing of non-Jews, issued a religious ruling saying that Jewish law permits the destruction of Gaza to keep southern Israel safe. Lior, chief rabbi of the Kiryat Arba settlement, issued the opinion after receiving questions about Jewish law’s position on harming…
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Fast Forward ‘Fake Charity’ Rabbi Ordered To Repay $522K
A Brooklyn rabbi who collected hundreds of thousands of dollars for fake charities and used the money to pay his cable TV and electric bill has agreed to pay restitution of $500,000 in a settlement reached today with New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. The rabbi, Yaakov Weingarten, pled guilty in New York State…
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Fast Forward Are European Rabbis Putting Stamp of Approval on Russian Takeover of Crimea?
Leaders of a prominent Jewish community in Ukraine criticized European rabbis who attended a Kremlin-sponsored Holocaust commemoration ceremony in Crimea. The Jewish Community of Dnepropetrovsk condemned the actions of the rabbis in a statement that it posted on its website last week in connection with a ceremony that was held on July 10 in Sevastopol….
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Fast Forward Stones Thrown at Dutch Chief Rabbi’s Home
A chief rabbi of the Netherlands said unidentified individuals hurled stones at his home in what he said was the second anti-Semitic attack on him in a week. Rabbi Binyomin Jacobs said the latest attack took place at 5 a.m. Thursday, when two stones were hurled through a window of his home in Amersfoort. An…
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Culture The Women Rabbis Of New Mexico
When I tell East Coast Jews that I’m from New Mexico, the first question out of their mouths is invariably, “Are there Jews in New Mexico?” Once I’ve quashed the temptation to shoot back, “What do YOU think?” I go on to explain. Yes, there are Jews in New Mexico. Yes, there is a synagogue…
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Fast Forward Russia Chief Rabbi Berel Lazar Brings Riot Police Escort to Crimea Synagogue
Russia’s chief rabbi Berel Lazar brought armed policemen, including riot police, to tour Crimea’s Reform synagogue in Simferopol, video footage shows. The chairman of the Ner Tamid Reform synagogue, Anatoliy Gendin, sharply criticized Lazar’s July 10 visit to his synagogue, suggesting that Lazar bullied his way inside the shul. Gendin, who was not in the…
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