Opinion

(JTA) — In Jewish communities around the world, there is a little known group of men and women dedicated to performing the mitzvah of preparing a body for burial, a ritual called tahara. The group is called the chevra kadisha, the holy society. The chevra kadisha isn’t a secret… Read more »

(JTA) — The other day, my Catholic mother-in-law again implored me, her sole Jewish daughter-in-law, to watch “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” The third season of the award-winning show is expected to air in a few months, so I dutifully resigned myself to the task. But as I watched, I… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) – In May, Pope Francis issued a detailed ruling on how officials in the Roman Catholic Church must handle cases of clerical sexual abuse, the first official codification of the church’s global policy. Though abuse survivors have criticized the pope’s ruling as not strong enough and for… Read more »

I have ordered the men not to molest you.” (Ruth 2:9) With these words, Boaz, the wealthy landowner, tells Ruth, the destitute Moabite, a stranger in Bethlehem, that she is not only free to glean in his fields and to gather what the reapers may drop, but that she… Read more »

This story originally appeared on Alma. Contrary to popular belief, summer is not only for the lighter things in life. It can be the best time for luxurious nostalgia and dark rumination. Like Lana Del Rey, I’ve often got that Summertime Sadness. This may be the reason why, without… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) — As in all life matters, when it comes to abortion, Judaism doesn’t speak of rights but of responsibilities and obligations. Seeing things through that lens can be a real eye opener. The concept of “rights” is deeply ingrained in our Western minds. We rarely stop… Read more »

JERUSALEM (JTA) — On May 24, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that I would be ordaining a gay Orthodox rabbinical student who was denied the opportunity to receive smicha from his own Orthodox yeshiva. On May 26,  I did so, ordaining Rabbi Daniel Atwood during a ceremony attended by more… Read more »

(JTA) – Alabama and Georgia have passed laws recently that limit or forbid abortions in unprecedented ways, joining a growing number of states that are attempting to dramatically restrict abortion access. During these charged times, it is appropriate for the Jewish community to remind ourselves that halacha (Jewish law) has a… Read more »

This story originally appeared on Kveller. A few months ago, when two of my kids and I boarded the London Underground, all eyes seemed to rest on us. My son’s small black kippah, which he always wears, seemed to be drawing dozens of staring faces — and also a… Read more »

This story originally appeared on Alma. I don’t remember exactly how soon it was after we became engaged that my fiance, Tony, offered to convert to Judaism. But I do remember telling him not to. For us, the decision to be married was less of a romantic whirlwind than… Read more »

The Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona took a proactive stance to harden local vigilance, bringing on 23-year law enforcement and security veteran Paul Patterson in March as the Jewish community security director. Patterson is assisting all area synagogues and agencies with facility security assessments, ensuring best practices and up-to-date… Read more »

Whether it’s a white supremacist targeting praying Jews, blacks, or Muslims, or an Islamic radical committed to killing Christians on Easter Sunday, it has become very trendy to attack houses of worship. In Europe, synagogues, unfortunately, have been targeted by terrorists for quite some time, including deadly attacks at… Read more »

NEW YORK (JTA) – Anti-Jewish incidents made up more than half the hate crimes reported in New York City in 2018 and so far this year. The 71st Precinct, which includes the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, reported nine incidents, the most of any precinct in the five boroughs.… Read more »

Within months of graduating from a Jewish high school near Boston in 2017, Asher Dale had an internship that he “absolutely loved” at Forter, an Israeli technology startup that sells online fraud protection services. The company, which processes more than $50 billion in transactions annually for a global network… Read more »

In the Post’s article regarding kosher establishments in Tucson, “As city’s only kosher market closes, Tucsonans get creative in search for products” (AJP 4/19/19),  I wanted to bring to your attention another establishment under kosher certification, which has been proudly serving the Jewish community for the past seven years.… Read more »

POWAY, Calif. (JTA)— With hundreds gathered to show support for the victims of a shooting inside his synagogue, Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein recounted the moment when he came face to face with the gunman and what happened next: He described watching a congregant’s husband, a doctor, faint as he attempted… Read more »

(JTA) — On the Shabbat morning of April 27, Hadassah member Lori Gilbert-Kaye was murdered while celebrating Passover at the Chabad of Poway. The synagogue’s rabbi, a male congregant and an 8-year-old girl were wounded as well by the self-avowed white supremacist shooter. We know that anti-Semitism is on the… Read more »

WASHINGTON (JTA) – The terrorist attack at Chabad of Poway on April 27, which occurred on Shabbat and the last day of Passover, was horrific – and only the latest hate crime among the increasing number of anti-Semitic acts in recent years. The shooting left one dead and three injured.… Read more »

Somewhere, there’s a photograph: My future father-in-law is sitting at the head of the table. My future mother-in-law is sitting to his left and I’m sitting on his right, wearing a suit, tie and kippah. My stunningly beautiful fiancée is next to me, and the rest of the table… Read more »

BUDAPEST (JTA) – Architecture and built heritage can be powerful symbols. Notre-Dame de Paris is one of the most famous and familiar buildings in the world, visited by an astonishing 30,000 people a day, or 13 million people a year. It is embedded in global collective consciousness and immortalized around the… Read more »