Category
Commentary
But Is It Kosher?
It surprised me that a company well-known for its concern for animal well-being and food safety would deem anything kosher treif, or unfit. Long before Whole Foods was even a glimmer in the eye of the Prius-tocracy, hadn\’t we Jews been telling ourselves and others that we were practicing humane slaughter and thoughtful animal husbandry — embodied in the very laws of kashrut? What did Whole Foods know that I didn\’t?
Modern Orthodoxy’s Marriage Crisis
Hard-to-marry-off children have been worrying parents since Genesis, when Leah, her eyes tender from the sadness of being unwanted, took part in a hoax to trick Jacob — her younger, prettier sister\’s suitor — into marrying her.
Beware the Finkelstein Syndrome
It is well known that some children of Holocaust survivors carry severe scars and wounds that actually manifest in peculiar psychological behavior. For two decades, I worked as a licensed family therapist, and I believe that some day soon there will be a formal psychological syndrome that would account for self-hating Jews like Norman Finkelstein. Perhaps the syndrome will even be named after him: The Finkelstein Syndrome.
A Celestial Tour
If \”American Idol\” runner-up Katherine McPhee can enjoy even half the success achieved by Shiri Maimon, runner-up of the first season of Israel\’s version of the show — dubbed \”A Star Is Born\” — then she will be lucky. With a powerful voice and Britney-esque looks and videos, Maimon, 25, has become one of Israel\’s most sought-after and popular pop stars since winning fourth place in the Eurovision singing competition last year, representing Israel with the moving ballad, \”Sheket She\’nishar.\”
Them and Us
At 81, frail of body but sharp-tongued and wise, Rabbi Schulweis has made it his mission to preach the gospel of conversion to the Jews. That is we, as individuals and as a people, must seek and embrace converts. Doing so will not only improve Jewish life but improve our own lives as Jews.
The Arrogant Poet You Love to Hate
In \”Pound of Flesh,\” at the Odyssey Theater, Ezra Pound spars with Pvt. Cooper, a young soldier who keeps him company while he awaits trial in Italy for his crimes of treachery against the United States in World War II. If this private is not Pound\’s intellectual match, he more than matches the poet on moral grounds.
Ecohustle Blooms in Community Garden
The matter at issue is a community farm in South Central Los Angeles that has sprung up on 14.3 acres that do not belong to the farmers. The land belongs to Ralph Horowitz, who says he wishes to build a warehouse or to sell the land at something close to its market value.
New Articles
A Book That Writes Itself: Dalia Rotter Youngerwood’s Jewish Journal
A Look Back at Israel’s Concert History — and When the Big Acts Might Return
Why Diaspora Jews Should Care About a New Haredi Political Voice
My Teacher Union Ejected Me from a Meeting for Being a Zionist
