Art and culture should be a more important priority in the Jewish community agenda, internationally acclaimed painter and printmaker Ruth Weisberg told graduates of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) in her May 14 commencement address at the Los Angeles campus.
The long-awaited Mitchell commission report about Israeli-Palestinian violence was released yesterday, and now there is a debate over what to do with its recommendations. I have a suggestion. It\’s kind of a two-for-one deal. Take all the Mitchell reports, make a big pile out of them, and set them ablaze into a gigantic bonfire. It would surely generate enough heat, and light, to make a small contribution to the Bush energy plan.
In my house last Sunday evening Tony Soprano easily defeated Anne Frank as \”must-see TV.\” Yes, even in the home of committed Jews, the rancid affairs of a New Jersey Mafia family beat out the young girl of the Holocaust. The question is, why?
Jews have long understood the importance of study both as a religious activity and as the passageway to a shared culture. American Jews are waking up to how important it is to give their children a solid Jewish education so that they can choose the part they will play in the future of our people. The problem is that our educational systems are having a hard time keeping up, basically because we don\’t have enough good teachers for our day schools or for our congregational schools, where the majority of our children are formally trained in our heritage.
Every morning as Rabbi Samuel Graudenz prays, he asks for the safe return of Chandra Ann Levy.
Jews may provide the swing vote in next week\’s tight race for the City Council\’s 5th District between the well-known Tom Hayden and newcomer Jack Weiss.
Shavuot celebrates the receiving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai and brings with it centuries of food traditions. It is the time when dairy foods are traditionally served, and cheese blintzes are one of the most popular dishes of the holiday.
While B\’nai B\’rith has pledged $1 million to national, international and regional programming in fiscal year 2002, the local chapters, like the 15 located from Thousand Oaks to the South Bay, are going to feel the crunch.
Next Thursday, May 31, the day school of Temple Emanuel in Beverly Hills, where Geller has served as senior rabbi since 1994, will honor her as this year\’s Eishet Chayil (Woman of Valor) at its annual scholarship luncheon.
