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 »
Most synagogues in North America finance their operations by assessing dues from their members, with an annual notice outlining the required payment. This year, Tucson’s Congregation Bet Shalom is doing things differently. Instead of mandatory dues, Bet Shalom is adopting a free-will, pay-what-you-like policy. Administrators at the Conservative congregation… Read more »
Mindful of its rich 40-year history, Tucson Hebrew Academy has launched a new business strategy and branding project. “We want to talk with and hear input from the Jewish community,” says Jon Ben-Asher, interim head of school. Bromberg Consulting has developed a confidential questionnaire to elicit an “open dialogue… Read more »
Tucson’s Jewish schools are heading into the new school year with new programs and teachers on tap. As Tucson Hebrew High begins its 37th year, Rabbi Yudi Ceitlin joins the faculty, teaching a course on overlooked epic moments in history. Cantor Janece Cohen will direct the first Tucson Hebrew… Read more »
Deborah Kaye Online Jewish education is thriving, and the University of Arizona’s Center for Judaic Studies is part of the trend. As with other online Jewish studies programs, most of the center’s courses will be “blended learning, part in-person and part online,” says Deborah Kaye, Ph.D., a full-time adjunct lecturer at… Read more »
Avi Szychter rallies campers during the Camp J Maccabiah games in July. (Julie Zorn/TJCC) Sitting in the Tucson Jewish Community Center, surrounded by Jewish children and adolescents, French teenager Avi Szychter feels right at home. For the 18-year-old, spending the summer in the Camp J Bonim Leaders-in-Training program has been the perfect opportunity to escape the growing anti-Semitism in France and relax before… Read more »
Rabbi Robert Eisen speaks at a “We Stand With Israel” rally at Congregation Anshei Israel on Aug. 7. An air raid siren wailed through Congregation Anshei Israel. On the southern wall of the sanctuary, a video showed people scurrying for shelter and lying down in the middle of a plaza, covering their heads. “In Israel, you only have 15 seconds to save your life,” an announcer intoned… Read more »
Bonnie Golden at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem with Robert Indiana’s “Ahava” (Love) sculpture Jews of a certain age might share similar early impressions of Israel. In Chicago, where I grew up, the young congregants at Lawn Manor Hebrew Congregation were inculcated with a firm commitment to the Jewish state. We saved our dime tokens to plant our trees, circle danced Israeli style… Read more »
Holocaust memorial stars on the railroad tracks at Salonika, Greece We sang “Happy Birthday” in Hebrew to 9-year-old Miriam in the Athens Jewish Community School; we talked with teenagers Gala and Tal at a summer camp near Salonika; we listened in Tel Aviv as Yuval who lost both arms and Tzipi who was paralyzed told us how they used their abilities… Read more »
"Lights on Shadows" by Abigail Gumbiner The Jewish History Museum will present Temple of Shadows, a photography exhibit, from Aug. 20 through Nov. 1. A set of 15 prints shows the museum, formerly the Stone Avenue Temple… Read more »
The Women’s Academy for Jewish Studies at Congregation Chofetz Chayim will present “Out of the Depths,” a brunch and book presentation, on Sunday, Sept. 21 at 11 a.m. “Out of the Depths,” the autobiography of Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, tells the story of the youngest survivor of the Buchenwald… Read more »
Congregation Bet Shalom is forming Cub Scout Pack 613. The pack will accept boys ages 6 to 10 and a half of any religious affiliation, but it will be a Jewish pack, observing all Jewish holidays and kosher laws. The pack will be directed by Frank Youdelman, who has… Read more »
Tucsonan Shoham Ozeri, left, and a fellow IDF lone soldier in May 2014, more than a month before Israel launched Operation Protective Edge. The intense fighting between Israel and Gaza has evoked mixed emotions for the parents of two local lone soldiers. Max Gan, 23, made aliyah in 2010 and was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces that November. He served as a paratrooper and is now in the army reserves. He… Read more »
On our recent trip to Israel with Temple Emanu-El my husband and I made a special trip to Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem. Special is indeed an understatement. Our mission was to deliver the adorable therapy dolls lovingly made by the women of Hadassah Southern Arizona, as well… Read more »
