JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Neshama Carlebach knows what its like to take heroes off their pedestals. “I know now the value of pain and being able to look inside,” she said. “What began as the greatest moment of loss in my life, I now see as a rising, and in that rising I can find my real voice.” As…
Our nation’s reckoning with sexual assault has unfolded with powerful parallels in our Torah’s narrative of our liberation from Egypt. As more and more women have come forward to describe harrowing experiences of sexual assault, I am reminded of our enslaved ancestors who dared to mark their doorposts with blood, identifying themselves as one of…
NEW YORK (JTA) — When Rabbi Angela Buchdahl announced how her synagogue would respond to the #MeToo moment, she singled out a man. But he wasn’t one of her congregants, synagogue clergy or staff members. He was Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, perhaps the most prominent 20th-century composer of American Jewish music. Carlebach penned a vast body…
Dear Editor, Thankfully, we have begun a conversationas to how communities can deal with sexual abuse allegations against Shlomo Carlebach. The sound of his gorgeous music may be an integral part of Jewish life, but the pain of those abused by him is too loud to ignore any longer. Here are two suggestions that would…
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…
2017 has, collectively, been few people’s ideas of a fun year. Still, it’s welcomed a wealth of excellent journalism. While we’ve previously celebrated work from other outlets, the Forward’s staff has also chosen our own most exceptional work from this year — our 120th in business. My picks include Sam Kestenbaum’s deeply reported “How This…
I can’t walk into any synagogue in America – and barely any synagogue in the world – without hearing songs written by the man who sexually assaulted my mother. That’s because my mom is one of the many of girls and young women whom Shlomo Carlebach sexually harassed, assaulted or abused while he traveled the…
Though Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach has been dead for nearly as long as I’ve been alive, his music and ethos still echo throughout American Jewish communal life and liturgy. Carlebach’s music is almost childishly simple, often utilizing only a few easy chords and repeating a few short verses in Hebrew. In the right environment, it can…
