Opinion

A key component that unifies a people or nation is a common language. The Jewish people are no exception; the Hebrew language is an essential element of what constitutes the Jewish nation. Hebrew often is the only common language in the room — the lingua franca — when Jews… Read more »

For more than 30 years, my relationship with Jewish federations, Israel Bonds, the America Israel Public Affairs Committee, J Street and Hillel has been the focus of my life. I have chaired federation and Israel Bonds campaigns, led and helped create Jewish day schools in both Milwaukee and Tucson,… Read more »

It is no secret that when Israel’s government announced this past September that we would be returning to the table to negotiate with the Palestinians, I was not optimistic about the prospects of this latest round of talks. I knew that as much as we desire peace and normalcy… Read more »

Scarcely a week goes by, it seems, without Israel’s Minister of Defense Moshe Ya’alon getting his name into the headlines for provocative statements about the United States and its leaders. First, he called US Secretary of State John Kerry “obsessive and messianic” for his efforts to mediate a peace… Read more »

After years of fighting against anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union and later in an independent Ukraine, the Ukrainian Jewish community is now confronting a new threat. This threat comes from an unprecedented effort by the Russian government and others to paint a false impression of the state of anti-Semitism… Read more »

Sid Schwarz

ROCKVILLE, Md. (JTA) — Increasing numbers of Jewish institutions are starting to pay attention to the disabled in our midst. The needs of this part of our community were in the communal spotlight in February, thanks to it being Jewish Disability Awareness Month. As with so many categories of… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — A key component that unifies a people or nation is a common language. The Jewish people are no exception; the Hebrew language is an essential element of what constitutes the Jewish nation. Hebrew often is the only common language in the room – the lingua… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — The last time Ambassador Samuel Lewis was at an Anti-Defamation League podium was in April 2008 as part of a roundtable celebrating Israel’s 60th anniversary. The speakers were each asked to share their most vivid and representative recollections of Israel. Sam, a distinguished State Department… Read more »

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to the AIPAC Policy Conference was another rhetorical tour-de-force by this most silvered-tongued of Israeli leaders. There were applause lines for almost everyone. Once again, Netanyahu promised to defend Israel against an Iranian nuclear threat and to be beholden to no other nation in… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Questions of personal status are among the most sensitive issues in Judaism and thus require responsible rabbinic leadership. That is one reason why there was such an outcry last year when Israel’s Chief Rabbinate refused to allow my teacher, Rabbi Avi Weiss, to vouch for the… Read more »

In light of a ship caught carrying aggressive weapons, aimed at terrorizing his fellow countrymen, the leader delivered a firm message, warning that neither his country “nor the world community of nations can tolerate deliberate deception and offensive threats on the part of any nation, large or small. We… Read more »

Washington – In the past week, I had the honor of spending several days with Ami Ayalon, a decorated Israeli war hero and former commander of the Israeli navy and head of the Shin Bet security service from 1995 to 2000. Ayalon was in the United States to address… Read more »

(Photo: Nati Shohat/Flash 90)

For Americans, the definition of national identity is straightforward: It goes hand in hand with citizenship. If you are an American citizen, you are also American by nationality. The same applies to the French, Germans and many others. In Israel, however, there is a different but equally valid conception… Read more »

Anti-Israel protesters march in front of the White House in 2013. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (JTA) — Leaders of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement say they are protesting Israel’s policies in the West Bank. They are doing far more than that. BDS advocates routinely oppose a two-state solution and seek to delegitimize the sovereign, Jewish State of Israel. In some cases,… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA)– On Mar. 8, we celebrate International Women’s Day, a day intended to celebrate the economic and social advances made by women, while at the same time drawing attention to areas that still need action. It is striking that this year the day falls so close to Purim.… Read more »

Recently, at the Jerusalem Press Club, I hosted Marcella Rosen, the author of “Tiny Dynamo: How One of the Smallest Countries Is Producing Some of Our Most Important Inventions.” Amazon advertises this book as a “fascinating collection of 21 stories detailing Israel’s inventions that benefit all of mankind. From… Read more »

Just how open should Jewish institutions be when it comes to talking about Israel? That’s the question at the center of a flurry of controversies over the last few days involving Jewish museums, an Orthodox high school and Hillel chapters on college campuses. For years, Jewish institutions have been… Read more »

 John Kerry is not the first U.S. secretary of state trying to broker peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Nor the first to be rewarded with angry Israeli response for his efforts. James Baker, for one, is still perceived today as one of the secretaries most hostile to Israel. Kerry,… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — The hostile intentions of the international boycott, divestment and sanctions movement toward Israel are clear. But some believe it is possible to be pro-Israel while supporting just a little BDS — boycotting Israeli businesses located on the West Bank but not those within pre-1967 Israel.… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — On her way out the door to defend the SodaStream company, the suddenly political Scarlett Johannson threw a grenade at her erstwhile cause, the international aid organization Oxfam. According to her spokesperson, “she and Oxfam have a fundamental difference of opinion in regards to the… Read more »