Omri Boneh, the Jewish National Fund’s northern Israel regional director, in the area destroyed by the 2010 Carmel Fire, January 2013. (Ben Sales/JTA) The rabbi’s yarmulke fluttered in the wind, his hand holding it to his head, as he recited El Malei Rachamim, the traditional prayer for the deceased. In front of him were 50 guards from a nearby prison. Behind him, a wall displayed the names of 44 prison service cadets,… Read more »
Scott Edmiston The Brandeis National Committee will host its annual University on Wheels event on Thursday, Feb. 7, at 9 a.m. at Skyline Country Club. Scott Edmiston, director of the Office of the Arts at Brandeis University, will speak on: “Truth or Beauty: The Need for Art in the 21st Century.”… Read more »
Bryan Pisetsky Bryan Pisetsky will join the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona as campaign manager full time beginning April 3. He will relocate to Tucson from California with his wife, Kira, and two children. Pisetsky’s professional career has included an outreach fellowship with the Las Vegas Hillel Center for Jewish Student… Read more »
Temple Emanu-El will host the annual Jewish Camp Fair on Sunday, Feb. 3, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Camp directors from more than 15 Jewish camps will be on hand to meet with parents and children from the entire Jewish community. Camps from across the United States will… Read more »
The Weintraub Israel Center and Temple Emanu-El will present “Israel: Past and Present,” a five-week adult education series beginning Feb. 4. Classes will meet at Temple Emanu-El on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. The topics are: Feb. 4: “Israel’s Cultures, Past and Present” with Ken Miller, University of Arizona staff… Read more »
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is sponsoring a Birthright Israel trip for young professionals, graduate students and upperclassmen in June 2013. If you are 20-26 years old, grew up in Tucson or live here now (including attending the University of Arizona), and have never been to Israel on… Read more »
The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona will hold a reception for winter residents on Thursday, Feb. 14 at 5 p.m. at the home of Randee and Myron Jacobs. Casual attire is suggested. The guest speaker will be Amy Hirshberg Lederman, who will present “Every Family Has a Story to… Read more »
The Young Women’s Cabinet will kick off a healthy new year with its winter event on Wednesday, Feb. 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. The evening will include a cardio-kickboxing class and a discussion of heart health with Claudine Messing, vice president of… Read more »
Rabbi Arthur Green Rabbi Arthur Green has forged his own spiritual path for a half-century. A preeminent authority on neo-Hasidism, mysticism and Jewish spirituality, Green will be in residence at Temple Emanu-El from Feb. 7 to 9 as the distinguished scholar for its 2013 Arthur T. Bilgray lecture series. Recognized as one… Read more »
Matisyahu Matisyahu, the no-longer-Hasidic reggae superstar, will bring his first acoustic tour to Tucson on Wednesday, Jan. 30, performing at the Rialto Theatre. The concert will feature acoustic renditions of tracks from his latest album, “Spark Seeker,” in addition to some fan favorites. While in Santa Monica earlier this month… Read more »
Rabbi Billy Lewkowicz Congregation Bet Shalom will celebrate its 30th year by honoring Rabbi Philip (“Billy”) Lewkowicz and his wife, Ada, at a gala dinner on March 3. “Rabbi Billy has been associated with our congregation as a guest speaker, participant in study groups and panel discussions and especially as our religious… Read more »
Rabbi Jason Holtz It has been a bit more than one month since the Newtown tragedy, where 26 people, including 20 children, were killed. It has been a bit more than two years since the tragic shooting here in Tucson. The sad reality is that the amount of violence involving guns in… Read more »
TEL AVIV (JTA) — One day after the election, all of the Israeli news sites show an even pie chart: 60 Knesset seats for the left and 60 for the right. But the Knesset isn’t actually divided 60-60. It’s split four ways — 42 for the right, 48 for… Read more »
President Obama speaks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following their meetings on May 20, 2011. (White House /Pete Souza) WASHINGTON (JTA) — With the Israeli election results split evenly between the right-wing bloc and everyone else, no one in Washington is ready to stake their reputation on what the outcome means for the U.S.-Israel relationship and the Middle East. Except for this: The next Israeli government likely will… Read more »
Likud-Beitenu supporters cheer after hearing the results of exit polls on the Israeli elections, Jan. 22, 2013. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90/JTA) TEL AVIV (JTA) – His party shrunk, his opponents grew and his challengers multiplied. But with the results in, it seems Benjamin Netanyahu survived the Knesset elections on Jan. 22 to serve another term as prime minister. Netanyahu faces a bumpy road ahead. His Likud party, together with the… Read more »
The design of Italy's Holocaust museum in Rome will feature a huge flattened black cube bearing the names of Italian victims. (Courtesy Rome City government)
ROME (JTA) — If all goes according to plan, a starkly modern, $30 million Holocaust museum will soon rise on the site of fascist dictator Benito Mussolini’s Rome residence. The site, also the location of ancient Jewish catacombs and now a city park, will be home to a museum… Read more »
(JTA) — A few observations about the Israeli election results: Right-left split changes, but not a game changer: From an outsider’s perspective, Israel would seem to a very politically unstable place. The biggest party in the previous Knesset, Kadima, crashed from 28 seats to two. The No. 3 party, Yisrael… Read more »
Rabbi Julie Schonfeld reads a psalm at the presidential inaugural service at the National Cathedral in Washington, Jan. 22, 2013. (Ron Kampeas/JTA) WASHINGTON (JTA) — The inaugural poem included a “shalom,” and three rabbis and a cantor attended the traditional next-day inaugural blessing. But the message that Jewish Democrats were most eager to convey during President Obama’s second inauguration on Jan. 21 was that the long romance between the community and… Read more »
An Israeli man casts his vote at a polling station in Jerusalem, Jan. 22, 2013. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90/JTA) JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israelis are rarely shy about offering their opinions, especially on politics. This year, however, a good number of them aren’t sure what their opinions are. As Election Day approached, a large proportion of voters — 15 percent — were still undecided, according to polls. Some remained… Read more »
Yair Shamir, son of Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, is second on the hardline Yisrael Beiteinu's Knesset list. (Courtesy Yair Shamir) TEL AVIV (JTA) — Yair Shamir says he doesn’t discuss hypotheticals. For the Israeli Air Force commander turned technocrat turned politician, these topics include how to respond to settlement evacuations or achieve Palestinian statehood, a fracture in the U.S.-Israel relationship or Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Liberman’s departure from politics.… Read more »
