Kosher meat plant raid wreaks widespread havoc
May 21, 2008
More than lost jobs, deportations, criminals and kosher beef are at stake
Ben Harris
Some Jews still upset as Pope readies U.S. visit
April 11, 2008
When news broke last year that Pope Benedict XVI was reviving an ancient prayer for the conversion of the Jews, the reaction in Jewish circles was outrage tempered by confusion.
Communal leaders warned that the move would deal a serious blow to the four decades of progress in Jewish-Catholic relations following Nostra Aetate — the landmark document that absolved the Jews of collective guilt for the killing of Jesus — unless the pope clarified how the prayer meshed with Catholic doctrine.
Hillel opens doors to non-Jews, campus at large
April 4, 2008
Hillel centers on university campuses were viewed not long ago as little more than the local Jewish hangout, a place where students could come for kosher meals or socialize with other Jews. But in a move that Hillel leaders say has been forced upon them by this generation\’s altered social landscape, the organization is throwing open its doors to everyone, designing programs that appeal to Jews and non-Jews and hyping its contribution to university — not only Jewish — life.
Conservative seminary in Israel pushes pro-gay event off campus
March 27, 2008
In a sign of continuing friction among Conservative Jews over the issue of homosexuality, a ceremony in Jerusalem to mark the first anniversary of the decision to admit gays to the Jewish Theological Seminary was held away from the campus of the movement\’s main educational institution there.
Coen brothers, Chabon teaming up on ‘Yiddish Policemen’
February 14, 2008
In some ways, it\’s a most natural shidduch. There\’s Michael Chabon, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist whose best-selling 2007 book, \”The Yiddish Policemen\’s Union,\” marked a turning point in the author\’s growing exploration of Jewish themes in his fiction. And Joel and Ethan Coen, the maverick filmmakers whose Jewish sensibility has been evident in countless of their movies, but who have yet to fully actualize their Semitic humor in a full-blown Jewish film. Until now. Late last week, the Guardian revealed that the Coens had agreed to write and direct the film adaptation of \”The Yiddish Policemen\’s Union.\”
Clinton wins N.Y. Jews, faces fight in California, nationally
February 8, 2008
JewishJournal.com VideoJew Jay Firestone covers the election from a local perspective
Hillary Rodham Clinton scored a major victory with Jewish Democrats in New York and New Jersey in Super Tuesday voting, Barack Obama won a majority of Jewish support in Connecticut and Massachusetts, and the battle was close in California.
Candidate profile: Mike Huckabee
February 1, 2008
Mike Huckabee was a barely known former governor of Arkansas when he attended an October house party on his behalf at the home of Jason Bedrick, New Hampshire\’s first Orthodox Jewish state representative.
Which is probably why no major media outlets picked up on the Republican presidential candidate\’s radical proposal that day for the Middle East: a Palestinian state — in Egypt or Saudi Arabia.
\”He is truly a uniter and not a divider,\” Bedrick recently told JTA.
Modern Orthodoxy expands public roles for women
December 14, 2007
When Dina Najman was hired last year to lead Kehillat Orach Eliezer, a traditional Orthodox-style congregation, it was hailed as a major, if controversial, step forward for the status of women in Orthodoxy.
Agudath Israel emphasizes outreach to non-Orthodox
December 7, 2007
Is it permissible for an Orthodox family to play host to a Jewish couple if they don\’t observe laws mandating sexual abstinence in the period surrounding menstruation?
That was among the questions posed to two leading rabbinic authorities in late November at the 85th national convention of Agudath Israel of America, the main umbrella body for ultra-Orthodox, or haredi, Jewry.
The answer: It is, if the room has two beds.
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