Jewish News

Influence of Orthodox Jews Rising

In an editorial on the shifting of political and social power in New York City, the New York Times listed Orthodox Jews from Brooklyn as the group whose power and influence is rising fastest.It is not as if the Jews of Brooklyn suddenly had opinions. But in recent years, they have discovered a forum to share them — the Internet ...

Indictment: Journalist Stole 2,000 Classified Documents from IDF

A top secret case involving national security that was long kept under wraps by the IDF censor but was published in the international media was finally authorized for publication this morning. It involved the alleged theft of 2,000 secret IDF documents by a former soldier who worked as a journalist for the left-leaning Hebrew language news website Walla.Some details still remain classified, as the investigation by police, Shabak ...

Indian Jews To Celebrate Sukkos With Lulavim And Esrogim Sent From Israel

The Bnei Menashe community of northeastern India is planning to celebrate Sukkos this year thanks to the generous support of the Shavei Israel organization, which sent hundreds of sets of lulavim and esrogim from Israel to India prior to the onset of the holiday.In their festival prayers, the Bnei Menashe will offer their customary special plea, asking to fulfill their ...

Independence Day for an American rabbi

In a way, 4th of July is the American Shavuot: the moment when people summon the divine voice by bringing about liberation.In 1914, Mary Antin, an American Jewish writer and immigration activist, described the founding of the United States in biblical terms:“I have chosen to read the story of ’76 as a chapter in sacred history…. Once the thunders of ...

In Ukraine Town, Bar-Mitzvah and Shabbat Prayers, 70 Years Later

For the first time since before World War II, the small Jewish community in the Ukranian town of Netishin held prayer services this past Shabbat – and celebrated the Bar-Mitzvah of the grandson of the community’s last rabbi, 70 years after it had been scheduled to take place.The religious revival in the town is due to a construction project in ...

In Solidarity with Israel, Australian Jewish Leaders Observe Munich Olympic Memorial

Australian Jewish leaders observed a minute’s silence in honor of the 11 Israelis murdered 40 years ago at the Munich Games.Vic Alhadeff, chief executive of the New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies, at the gathering last Friday at the Jewish community center in Sydney recounted the tragedy and lauded governments and their leaders around the world who supported the ...

In post-revolution Tunisia, Jews have it good and are staying put

When Israeli Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom publicly urged Tunisia’s remaining Jews to move to Israel last week, he got a chilly reception from both the country’s tiny Jewish community and the Islamist party Ennahda, which won Tunisia’s recent election.“Tunisia was, is and will be a democratic country that respects its citizens and cares for them regardless of their religion,” ...

In Pictures / Jews around the world celebrate Hanukkah

Some 1,500 Jews attended a candle-lighting ceremony at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate Tuesday night, to commemorate the first of eight nights of Hanukkah, according to the Chabad Movement.According to Chabad, as they stood together singing the Hanukkah hymn “Maoz Tzur”, the Jewish residents, tourists and VIPs of Berlin celebrated the victory of light over darkness in a country that, less than ...

In light of Shoah, teens feel Israel should aid refugees

Most teenagers feel that the lessons of the Holocaust require Israel to offer assistance to refugees, according to a survey released on Monday.The poll, conducted on behalf of Massuah Institute for Holocaust Studies, showed about 67 percent of the 1,000 respondents, aged 15 to 18, believe the Jewish state should help foreigners fleeing persecution in their countries. In addition, about ...

In hiding after the Holocaust, Eichmann wanted to ‘come home’ to Germany

“The time has come for me to step out of the cloak of anonymity and present myself… Name; Adolf Eichmann. Occupation; S.S. Obersturmbannfuehrer…” Thus, directly and unabashedly, the architect of the final solution, Adolf Eichmann, wrote to the German chancellor from his hiding place, a decade after the Holocaust.The letter was uncovered in a German archive by a historian from ...

In Brussels, Friends of Israel to Mark J’lem Day

A Jewish group on Wednesday will hold an event at the European parliament commemorating Israel’s establishment of control over the eastern part of Jerusalem in 1967, a week after the national holiday was held in Israel.The European Jewish Community Center (EJCC), which is organizing the event, said the gathering will be attended by Minister-without- Portfolio Yossi Peled, Vice President of ...

In Brooklyn, a Hasidic Walking Tour Opens Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Life to Outsiders

When he was 18 and still living in his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Beryl Epstein received a call from his older brother, Mordechai, who was about to join the Israel Defense Forces.Mordechai urged his younger brother to come to Crown Heights, a largely ultra-Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York, where he was studying before heading to Israel.“I knew there ...