Is America a “Christian” nation? Or is it a secular nation, subject to Jefferson’s “wall of separation” between church and state? For many Americans, these are the central questions about the role of religion in public life. But the assumptions behind both questions reveal a certain ignorance. The story of America is not some fantasy…
Listen to certain sections of the body politic today, and you get the impression that George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were part-time — if not full-time — evangelicals. Not so, say s Marilyn Mellowes, who spent the better part of the past several years grappling with what she calls “the intersection of religion…
Uri Fink, who 30 years ago created Israel’s first superhero, in the form of Sabraman, has a theory about why comic book superheroes have caught on only in America. “It’s naive just thinking people will go out and fight the bad guys out of the goodness of their hearts,” he told the Forward. “It’s Americans’…
True, it was an opportunity to shake hands with President Obama, to shmooze with Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan and to count more than 30 Jewish lawmakers who showed up for the first ever White House Jewish American Heritage Month reception. But for many, the most thrilling moment was getting to shake hands with and…
In a few weeks time, sidewalks will be lined with autumn leaves. In America, many of the leaves will be red. In Europe, they will mostly be yellow. Until now, the reason for the difference has been a mystery. But in a theory just published in the Journal New Phytologist, Haifa University academic Simcha Lev-Yadun…
The gates of acknowledgment are closing on Jewish Americans, but it’s time to kick them back open. The National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia has recently announced an online vote on who will appear in a multimedia exhibit of the museum’s Only in America Gallery set to open in 2010. Voting and nominations…
There’s a truly fascinating new poll out on Israel-Diaspora relations, which shows that among adult Israeli Jews: • 57% believe that American organizations that lobby the US government in support of pro-Israel policies should always support the policies of the current Israeli government while 32% said that such organizations are free to openly oppose the…
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