News

By Ben Harris TEL AVIV (JTA) — Gidi Grunberg at 16 fell in love with a boy at his Orthodox high school near Tel Aviv. Consumed by guilt, he transferred to a high school that was more strictly religious, hopeful that with more rigorous Torah study his… Read more »

By Ron Kampeas/Jan. 5, 2010 WASHINGTON (JTA) — A new poll suggests that American Jews are more conflicted about the challenges of immigration than their communal leaders — but that’s to be expected, the Jewish leaders say. The poll, commissioned by the pro-enforcement Center for Immigration Studies,… Read more »

CARTAGENA, Colombia (JTA) -- Luis Alberto Prieto Vargas appears to be a Jew. He wears a kipah, he introduces himself as Jewish and two years ago Vargas, a Christian by birth, underwent a conversion ceremony to Judaism following several years of religious study. But Vargas’ conversion hit a key… Read more »

BIELSKO-BIALA, Poland (JTA) -- Outside the elegant theater in the city of Bielsko Biala in southern Poland, a billboard advertises an upcoming play. Stark letters spell out the title: "Zyd" -- Jew. The lettering looks almost menacing, like scrawled graffiti, and I am a little taken aback. But then… Read more »

Ester Lautenberg

“It was wonderful therapy” to begin writing books the year after Mitchell died, says Leutenberg, whose daughter Kathy Khalsa, a psychiatric occupational therapist, had approached her about a collaboration. Khalsa wanted to create a workbook with reproducible handouts that would be fun to use, and would help people open… Read more »

Many rabbis tell jokes during their sermons, but Rabbi Bob Alper makes his living primarily as a stand-up comic. And he still conducts High Holiday services at Temple Micah in Philadelphia “so I don’t have to listen to other rabbis preach, because I’m funnier,” he… Read more »