Opinion

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 »

The Jewish Community Relations Council issued a statement Tuesday urging Gov. Jan Brewer to veto SB1062, which would allow businesses to deny service to gays and others on “religious freedom” grounds: “As the public affairs and social justice arm of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, the Jewish Community… Read more »

     I was horrified to read the article in the Arizona Daily Star on Jan. 16 regarding SB1062. This is a bill being pushed by State Sen. Steve Yarbrough (R-Chandler). According to the Star, SB1062 “would allow businesses to discriminate against gays and potentially women and Jews, as long… Read more »

What a delight to be present when Eileen Warshaw received the well-deserved Margie Fenton Award at the Jewish Community Relations Council annual meeting on Jan. 5. It was also wonderful to see so many young people there in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Jewish Latino Teen Coalition.… Read more »

I am Jewish and among my passions are peace and social justice. I went to Washington, D.C. Feb. 3-4 as a member of a delegation supporting diplomacy with Iran. I don’t want any Americans to ever have to say they are veterans of the Iran War. I have seen… Read more »

The Friedman-Paul Post 201 of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America has been active in Tucson since 1950. The JWV was founded in 1896 and is the oldest active veterans organization in the USA. Our mission is to make it known that Jews served in… Read more »

Have you said the Mi Sheberach for a friend or family member? Have you been ill and had a Mi Sheberach said for you? Are there other ways in which Jewish rituals, texts, traditions or communities helped you through an illness or a difficult time? I am currently working… Read more »

Jonathan S. Tobin

In the past few weeks, Secretary of State John Kerry has come under attack from prominent Israelis as well as American friends of the Jewish state for some of the methods he has adopted in his determination to find a solution to the Middle East conflict. Such criticism strikes… Read more »

Rabbi Sharon Brous

John Kerry is not a naive man. I met him recently at a luncheon at Georgetown University with a small group of Christian, Muslim and Jewish faith leaders brought together to hear the secretary of state’s frank reflections on the peace process. While deeply aware of the complexities and… 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 »

NEW YORK (JTA) — All in favor of a strong Jewish future say “aye.” On that core question, there is resounding unanimity, but there have been some unnecessarily polarizing articles in the Jewish press suggesting that we have to select either endogamy or outreach. Nonsense! Such binary thinking reduces… Read more »