A key element in Labor Party leader Ehud Barak\’s strategy tobecome prime minister is to win support from Orthodox andultra-Orthodox (haredi) voters, who backed Binyamin Netanyahuoverwhelmingly in the last election. Now Barak is faced with adilemma: The price of wooing Orthodox votes is apparently his supportfor the Conversion Law, which is fast approaching decision time inthe Knesset.
Mickey Weiss, everybody\’s favorite mensch and philanthropist, diedmore than a year ago, but his good works go on.
If you\’re of a certain vintage, the lyrics to \”Day by Day,\” the memorable song from the legendary pop musical \”Godspell,\” come fairly easily to mind — even 30 years after the show\’s debut.
\”I am sure,\” said Sinai Temple\’s Rabbi DavidWolpe in his Rosh Hashanah sermon, \”that in almost every pulpit inAmerica from whatever denomination rabbis are speaking about theterrible strife we are enduring — Jew against Jew, as well as Jewagainst Arab — in the Land of Israel.\”
\nRose Freedman is 104 and, by any account, a remarkable woman.
There is nothing tentative or half-way about MarkC. \”Moshe\” Hardie.
Once again we are faced with the annual dilemma of what to doabout Halloween. Should we let the kids \”trick or treat\” or not? Weknow that Halloween is not a Jewish holiday; that is not the problem.We celebrate Thanksgiving and Presidents Day, both American holidayswhich reflect good values. Halloween, on the other hand, does notreflect a value system that we would like to pass on to our children.It focuses on taking, greed and violence, not to mention theconsequences, a nasty trick, played on those who refuse to give.
In Act Two: Scene II of Noel Coward\’s \”Design for Living,\” Gilda,the object of everybody\’s affection, gives a thumbnail critique of anew play by Leo, one of her rotating lovers.
What rights would a yarmulke-wearing child have in a public school that decides to prohibit hats on campus? What about a group of Jewish inmates who want to light Chanukah candles when a regulation clearly bans fire of any kind inside a prison? Or a synagogue or church that wishes to build or expand in a restricted area?
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