Posts By PHYLLIS BRAUN - AJP Executive Editor

There is much craziness revolving around the war between Israel and Hamas. It appears that one of the key strategic objectives of Hamas is to grow anti-Semitism worldwide … and they are succeeding. And it is a shame as more and more wrongly informed Americans, as well as citizens… Read more »

Melissa Suzanne Klein and Matthew Loren Landau were married on March 23, 2014 at Reflections at the Buttes in Tucson, with Rabbi Thomas Louchheim of Congregation Or Chadash officiating. Melissa is the daughter of Cindy Klein of Grass Lake, Mich., and Steve Klein of Tucson. She received a Bachelor… Read more »

Rabbi Batsheva Appel

Participating in sports is an important part of our children’s lives. When Bruce Feiler recently wrote in The New York Times about how the “youth sports juggernaut” is taking over the lives of families, I think he touched a nerve. His article, “There’s No Off in This Season,”  shares… Read more »

Rabbi Israel Becker of Tucson (left) and former Chief Rabbi of Israel Meir Lau in Tel Aviv in May

One winter night in the mid-1960s, when I was a young teenager, the stage was set for a very important meeting in Israel this past May. Unbeknownst to me, the true genesis for this meeting had begun some 80 years ago. On that winter night, a man arrived at… Read more »

Rabbi Charles Sherman

Rabbi Charles Sherman, author of “The Broken and the Whole: Discovering Joy after Heartbreak” will speak at Congregation Anshei Israel on Wednesday, Sept. 17, at 7 p.m. In the book, published in March to critical acclaim, Sherman writes about his journey dealing with a severely disabled son and the… Read more »

Shalom Tucson will hold a bagel brunch on Sunday, Sept. 14, 10 a.m. to noon at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The event is an opportunity for those new to the area or newly interested in the Jewish community to meet representatives of synagogues and local Jewish agencies and… Read more »

Congregation Chofetz Chayim and the Southwest Torah Institute will hold a “Torah for the Future” dedication on Sunday, Sept. 14 to celebrate the completion of a new Torah, the first Torah ever written expressly for the congregation and its educational and outreach division. Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild will be… Read more »

Chabad Tucson is commissioning a Jewish scribe, or sofer, to check and repair mezuzot and tefillin on the premises at Congregation Young Israel. Rabbi Moshe Liberow of Colorado Springs, Colo., will begin his work on Sunday, Aug. 31 and remain in Tucson for the duration of the week, depending… Read more »

Temple Emanu-El has launched Project Elul, a month-long program designed to assist in preparing for the High Holy Days. “While the gates of repentance are always open, it is better to prepare to enter them, including reflecting back on the past year, and taking stock, engaging in what is… Read more »

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin’s latest book, “Rebbe: The Life and Teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the Most Influential Rabbi in Modern History” landed on the New York Times bestseller list within weeks of its release in June to mark the 20th anniversary of the Rebbe’s death. Telushkin, one of the… Read more »

B’nai Tzedek Tucson Teen Philanthropy will hold its annual kick-off party on Sunday, Sept. 14 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Teens in grades 8-12 and their parents are invited to learn about B’nai Tzedek, a program of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona and the… Read more »

Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are our holiest days of prayer and personal reflection — and a time to remember people in need. Project Isaiah, a food drive benefiting the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, is an annual project of the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Jewish… Read more »

Asher Susser

Asher Susser, Ph.D., has returned to the Arizona Center of Judaic Studies, taking up an invitation extended to him when he was a visiting professor in Modern Israel Studies in 2010-2011. Susser, who’s on sabbatical from Tel Aviv University for the fall semester, will be teaching an undergraduate course… Read more »

The Anshei Israel group at Ammunition Hill in Jerusalem. Top row (L-R): Dani Bregman, Charlotte Bregman, Sandy Yalen (below Charlotte), Rebecca Herschberg, Renee Hulsey, Emelia Bregman, Breanna Bregman. Bottom row: MeMe Aguila, Lois Bodin, Phil Bregman, Gabe Herschberg, Eliane Herschberg, Aaron Herschberg, Debby Eisen. Not pictured: Jay King, Kris King, Herb Meshel, Bill Yalen and Rabbi Robert Eisen (Photo by Rabbi Robert Eisen)

Congregation Anshei Israel’s 2014 Family Mission to Israel began with a flight that left Tucson at 6 a.m. on June 25. We arrived in Israel the following day at 1:30 p.m. Seeing the first sights of Israel from the plane as we approached Tel Aviv made the tiredness of… Read more »

Aliya Markowitz with Cubby Graham, charity: water school partnerships manager, at the organization’s office in New York City

In the spirit of infusing the ethic of tikkun olam, repairing the world, into the process of becoming  B’nai Mitzvah, many synagogues now require their students to complete a mitzvah project in addition to learning Hebrew and chanting from the Torah. Students typically choose their own projects based on… Read more »

At an Aug. 17 party at the Tucson Jewish Community Center, local families created a poster that says “Shalom” in Hebrew and English to share with their “Same Moon” counterparts in Israel. (Courtesy Weintraub Israel Center)

Today’s families lead busy lives, but a simple opportunity to communicate with each other — let alone families thousands of miles away — can be a rare delight. “The Same Moon” project has provided just that. Six months ago, the Weintraub Israel Center connected 10 Tucson families who have… Read more »

PHILADELPHIA — Hillel, the campus student group, is expressing “outrage” over an attack on a Jewish student at Temple University on Wednesday and is calling on the university to ensure the safety of its Jewish students.At the same time, the school’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine is condemning the… Read more »

Oshrat Barel

My home town was under constant threat when I was a kid and my parents used to host soldiers for Shabbat dinner every Friday. I got used to seeing those green uniforms every week and listening to their stories. There was a time I was sure I had big… Read more »

Casa Milagro Artisans 6062 N. Oracle Road • 440-2567 Hours: Tues.–Thurs. 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Fri. and Sat. 10 a.m.–7 p.m., Closed Sunday and Monday 40 local artisans represented, handmade crafts, home décor, Native American jewelry and artwork, unique Southwest art Davis Dominguez 154 E. 6th St. • 629-9759 Hours:… Read more »

If you are not at home to water pots of colorful annuals, there are a number of welcoming green succulents that will survive long periods between watering in decorative containers.

    A nicely designed landscape with ample shade trees can boost the sale price of a home as much as $12,000 higher than identical homes on similarly sized lots that have poor landscaping, the American Association of Nurserymen reports. If you already have nice shade trees in place… Read more »