Alfred Schreier was proud to be among the 2,000 athletes representing 37 nations at this year’s European Maccabi Games held July 5 to 13 in Vienna, Austria. A Sahuarita resident, Schreier, 82, was born in Vienna, where he returned after the Holocaust to become a successful teen athlete in… Read more »
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THA grads: well-prepped
At Tucson Hebrew Academy parents sometimes say “you keep them in a cocoon,” says Ronnie Sebold, director of admissions. But this cocoon also nurtures THA students as they embark on their high school years. “They get a lot of comfort here, learn skills and are academically so prepared and… Read more »
Newest entrant into GOP field, Rick Perry, is longtime friend of Israel — and Jesus
WASHINGTON (JTA) — To some conservative Jews, Texas Gov. Rick Perry would make an excellent presidential candidate. He’s been to Israel more than any other candidate in the field and has said he loves it. Some conservative Jews say Perry creates jobs. But other Jewish conservatives seeking the anti-Obama… Read more »
As London burns, riots spread to Jewish communities
(JTA) – While some Jews in London marked Tisha b’Av on Tuesday by lamenting the burning of the Holy Temples on that day some two millennia ago, other London Jews watched as their city burned amid widespread rioting. “Everyone is shocked,” Joel Braunold, a lifelong Londoner, told JTA in… Read more »
After Norway and before 9/11 anniversary, U.S. answers questions about homegrown threats
WASHINGTON (JTA) — With the Norway attacks fresh in mind and the 10-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks fast approaching, are U.S. authorities paying attention to the right kinds of threats? The fear is that with polarization intensifying in America, extremists might mark the 10th anniversary of… Read more »
Tucson Padres to hold Jewish Heritage Night
The Outreach Connections of the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona is sponsoring Jewish Heritage Night at a Tucson Padres baseball game on Sunday, Aug. 21 at 7 p.m. at Kino Park (formerly Tucson Electric Park). The Padres will play against the Sacramento River Cats. Cosponsors of the event include… Read more »
With protests, Israelis are seeking the revival of the welfare state
The wave of protests sweeping Israel is about much more than the lack of affordable housing: It’s a grass-roots demand for a major redistribution of the nation’s wealth. In social terms, protesters are calling for a more caring government attuned to the needs of young, middle-class citizens who serve… Read more »
Nostalgic exhibit to depict Jewish life 1850-1950
A new exhibit, “History & Nostalgia: The Southern Arizona Jewish Experience, 1850-1950,” exploring the daily life of Jews of the Southern Arizona region, will be on display at the Jewish History Museum from Aug. 14 through Dec. 30. The exhibit is part of Tucson’s birthday celebrations (see tucsons birthday.org).… Read more »
Anshei Israel introduces new musical service
Congregation Anshei Israel will hold a special Shabbat evening service called “Shir Hadash: A New Song,” beginning Friday, Aug. 19, at 5:45 p.m., and continuing approximately once a month. The service will be led by Rabbis Robert Eisen and Ben Herman and feature Emily Ellentuck as cantorial soloist. Ellentuck… Read more »
After ruinous tornado, rabbis head to Joplin to help
NEW YORK (JTA) – When a tornado devastated the small city of Joplin, Mo., in late May, the city’s lone synagogue was left untouched — at least, physically. Bu tthen came the flood. Not as water, but in the form of phone calls from across the United States from… Read more »
Oswiecim, the city of Auschwitz, wrestles with whether the past must be part of its future
OSWIECIM, Poland (JTA) — Can a town that exists in the shadow of death transform itself into a place of normalcy? The question long has vexed Oswiecim, the town of 40,000 in southern Poland where the notorious Auschwitz death camp is located. For decades, residents and city leaders have… Read more »
Jerusalem tries to get its cultural groove on
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Amid the alleyways that zigzag through Jerusalem’s Nahlaot neighborhood, a nonprofit collective run by five young artists is trying to make art more accessible in a city known more for conflict than culture. The turquoise gate of Barbur Gallery opens onto a stone courtyard and garden… Read more »
Jewish leaders condemn, Argentine officials welcome Iranian offer
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA) — Jewish leaders are doubting the sincerity of an Iranian offer to help solve the Buenos Aires Jewish center bombing, while the Argentine government has welcomed the proposal. Following a ceremony Monday marking the 17th anniversary of the attack on the AMIA Jewish center, which… Read more »
Amid Murdoch scandal, Israel backers worry about muting of pro-Israel media voice
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Pro-Israel leaders in the United States, Britain and Australia are warily watching the unfolding of the phone-hacking scandal that is threatening to engulf the media empire of Rupert Murdoch, founder of News Corp. Murdoch’s sudden massive reversal of fortune — with 10 top former staffers and… Read more »
‘Never Better’ in Krakow?
KRAKOW, Poland (JTA) — Jews in Krakow have a new slogan — “Never Better.” The catchphrase is deliberately provocative, a blatant rejoinder to “Never Again,” the slogan long associated with Holocaust memory and the fight against anti-Semitic prejudice. It may be counterintuitive, acknowledges Jonathan Ornstein, the American-born director of… Read more »
A new generation of Jewish delis embraces sustainability
BERKELEY, Calif. (JTA) — Can a Jewish deli be a Jewish deli without pastrami? That’s the question Saul’s Restaurant and Deli in Berkeley is facing after refusing the delivery of a truckload of pastrami because it did not meet the deli’s sustainability standards. “We found out it is no… Read more »
Meet Australia’s Aborigine who is president of her Orthodox shul
SYDNEY, Australia (JTA) — Lisa Jackson Pulver is not your average Australian Jew. Yes, she is one of this country’s 110,000 or so Members of the Tribe, but she is also a member of another tribe: an Aboriginal clan called the Wiradjuri. Jackson Pulver says she’s not the only… Read more »
Monument fire spares Sierra Vista Jewish community
Usually a peaceful place, Dr. Samuel and Mary Caron’s house recently stood at the edge of a fiery maelstrom: the Monument wildfire, which as of Monday had burned 30,526 acres in Cochise County, but was considered 85 percent contained. The Caron home is at the bottom of Carr Canyon… Read more »
Reform’s Religious Action Center a temple of Jewish political activism at 50
While driving through Miami in the early 1950s, Kivie Kaplan spotted a sign that would change his life and eventually alter America’s political landscape. It read:”No dogs, no niggers, no kikes.” That jarring discovery caused Kaplan, a wealthy Jewish American businessman, to declare, “I’m going to spend the rest… Read more »
In Buenos Aires, mayor facing Jewish challenger taps rabbi to lead party list
Rabbi Sergio Bergman, already one of Buenos Aires’ most prominent spiritual leaders, has become one of the Argentine capital’s most highly visible political candidates. Bergman was tapped by the city’s incumbent mayor, Mauricio Macri, to lead his PRO party’s list for the municipal legislature. As the top candidate on… Read more »