Anabella Mandelblum, a kindergarten student at Jacobson Sinai Academy in North Miami Beach, is a recent immigrant from Venezuela. (Uriel Heilman) MIAMI (JTA) — When Alejandra Schatzky-Cohen and her husband decided to enroll their children in a Reform Jewish day school in North Miami Beach five years ago, they had more on their minds than the average prospective day school parent. The family was living in Caracas at the time… Read more »
BUCHAREST, Romania (JTA) — Touring the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005, Romanian President Traian Basescu was unprepared to confront some painful truths. Facing a photograph showing pro-Nazi Romanian troops offloading their Jewish countrymen from cargo trains, Basescu was shocked and saddened. For decades, his country’s educational system had… Read more »
Denver Academy of Torah teacher Benjamin Levy, center, is rooting for his hometown Seattle Seahawks, but is mindful of his students' passion for their native Denver Broncos. (Courtesy Benjamin Levy) BALTIMORE (JTA) — Rabbi Daniel Alter expects some added fervency during daily prayer services at the Denver Academy of Torah in the days leading up to the Super Bowl. Alter, the academy’s head of school, recalls that when the Colorado Rockies faced the Boston Red Sox in the 2007… Read more »
Adi Meyerson It was 11 o’clock on a chilly September night and I was coming home from a gig — my first in New York City. I had just moved to Manhattan from Jerusalem a couple of months before to become a professional jazz bass player and would take any job… Read more »
Gavin Cohen watches a shot. Tucson is a golfer’s paradise — and not just for retirees and sun-seeking vacationers. Many Tucsonans develop a love of the game at an early age, including several teens in the Jewish community, such as 15-year-old Gavin Cohen. “Gavin Cohen is a pretty good stick,” says Scott Gregoire, general… Read more »
“Phoenix 1” serigraph by Shraga Weil Congregation Anshei Israel will hold a “Festival of Israeli Art Show and Sale” Feb. 13 to 16 to benefit CAI’s youth and education programs. More than 1,500 works of art by over 100 known and upcoming Israeli artists will be on display. Presented by Safrai Gallery of Israel, the… Read more »
Sen. Bernie Sanders addressing a rally on Capitol Hill in 2013. (Courtesy photo) WASHINGTON (JTA) — Bernie Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont and the only self-described socialist in Congress, has long been an outspoken voice in Washington on issues of economic inequality. But with the vanishing middle class figuring prominently in the campaign for mayor of the country’s largest city, and… Read more »
French soccer star Nicolas Anelka performing the quenelle after scoring a goal at a match in London, Dec. 28, 2013. (Christopher Lee/Getty Images) (JTA) — When West Bromwich Albion striker Nicolas Anelka exposed British soccer fans to the vaguely Hitlerian salute now sweeping his native France, Jewish groups were confident a strong response was coming. After all, Britain is considered a leader in the fight against xenophobia in sports thanks to its… Read more »
(JTA) — A timeline of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s life. 1928 — Born Ariel Sheinerman in Kfar Malal, near Tel Aviv. 1942-48 — Member of the Haganah, the pre-state Jewish fighting force. 1948 — Wounded while serving as an infantry commander in Israel’s War of Independence. 1952-53… Read more »
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Until recently, the rule of thumb in the pro-Israel community was that the bigger the academic group, the less likely it was to consider a boycott of Israeli colleagues. But with the 30,000-member Modern Language Association set to host a panel on BDS at its convention… Read more »
An angel's trumpet is the tree of choice for a planting by Edmon J. Rodman at an impromptu backyard service for Tu b'Shvat. (Edmon J. Rodman) LOS ANGELES (JTA) — While my neighbors were putting their Christmas trees to the curb, in what seems like a ritual of replacement, I was preparing to plant for Tu b’Shvat. My friend Freda recently presented me a cutting from an Angel’s trumpet — a small tree with beautiful,… Read more »
Thinking about going to Israel in 2014? At least five Tucson congregations would be delighted to have you join them. Congregation Or Chadash is first up with a trip March 5 to 12. Congregation Chofetz Chayim’s trip will be May 4 to 18, followed by Congregation Bet Shalom June… Read more »
Congregation Anshei Israel will present a three-week adult education series offering a wide range of speakers on being Jewish and Judaism. The series will take place on Wednesdays, Jan. 22, 29 and Feb. 5, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. A different keynote speaker will open each evening from… Read more »
Hava Tirosh-Samuelson “Judaism and the Contemporary Pursuit of Happiness” will be the topic of the Arizona Center for Judaic Studies Shaol & Louis Pozez Memorial Lecture on Monday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m., at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Hava Tirosh-Samuelson, of Arizona State University, will discuss happiness as a central… Read more »
Rabbi Thomas Louchheim Happy New Year, my friends. I know that some of you are saying to fellow Jews, “Happy secular New Year,” as if perhaps we are unable to distinguish between Jan. 1 and Rosh Hashanah. And yet, I tell my congregants, we are fortunate to have two calendrical opportunities to… Read more »
French comedian Dieudonne demonstrating the quenelle, a vaguely Nazi-like gesture whose popularity has soared in France. (YouTube) PARIS (JTA) — To outsiders, they seem like ordinary men striking macho poses for the camera. But there is a dark side to the photos that are appearing with growing frequency in the French media. The men — and less frequently women — are performing the “quenelle,” a gesture… Read more »
Rabbi Yossi Winner cycles the UA Chabad menorah to a new location on campus. (Courtesy UA Chabad) Mitzvah 613 Torah dedication Hundreds of people gathered on Sunday, Dec. 8, to witness the dedication of Congregation Anshei Israel’s new Torah, the culminating event to a yearlong celebration of the synagogue’s 83rd anniversary. The event included learning stations and art projects for all ages, performances by adult and… Read more »
As part of its quest to continue as “the heart of Conservative Judaism in Southern Arizona,” says Rabbi Robert Eisen, Congregation Anshei Israel is launching a search process for one or more professionals to fill the roles of cantor and educator. “Our mission statement is wordy (CAI shall serve… Read more »
Members of Firefighters Without Borders, the seven-man Arizona delegation that traveled to Israel in October, will discuss their trip at Hadassah Southern Arizona’s lunch program on Sunday, Jan. 5. The local firefighters conferred with Israeli firefighters and rescue workers to learn firsthand how to respond to mass casualties. Their… Read more »
Shalom Tucson will host a free bagel brunch for newcomers and anyone interested in the Tucson Jewish community on Sunday, Jan. 12, at 10 a.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center. Representatives from synagogues, agencies and organizations will provide “one stop shopping for our warm and vibrant Jewish community,”… Read more »
