Today is the Fast of Gedaliah, traditionally observed because Yishmael ben Netanyah, a Jewish extremist, murdered Gedaliah ben Ahikam, the final Jewish Babylonian-appointed governor of the Land of Israel, and the last Jew to govern the land before 1948. I think, though, that the rabbis instituted the fast because they needed a cool-down period after the food marathon of Rosh Hashanah. Either way, the result is that I haven’t eaten since last night, so that’s why this is a non-brunch, and why i can get away with writing it at 6:30 p.m.
Anyway, now that we’ve all survived two days of endless services, endless meals and a comprehensive reckoning of our lives during the past year, here are ten New Voices articles from 5770–two from each section–that aim to provide a bit of a retrospective on what we’ve covered.
Aaron Greenstein explores Orthodox Jewish romantic mores in the hypersexualized atmosphere of the campus. [No Sex in the Synagogue]
Miriam Berger uncovers the world of the Jewish ROTC student. [Nu, Uncle Sam Wants You?]
Elke Weiss writes our first piece on Park51–on June 18. [Fifth Column at the Town Hall]
Toni Hellman reports on how the Jewish green movement is blossoming–outside of Israel. [Making the Diaspora Bloom]
Amy Beth Oppenheimer discusses what’s wrong and what’s right with Israeli marriage laws, and how they might change. [Unholy Matrimony]
Jeremy Siegman makes the case for why two peoples may share one land, in a timely article. [States of Denial]
Harpo Jaeger defends pluralism in the conversation about Zionism [Who’s Afraid of the Anti-Zionists?]
Moriel Rothman admonishes those defending Helen Thomas. [The Real Problem with Helen Thomas]
Kelly Seeger asks what effect the Kindle will have on Jewish reading. [Is the E-Book Good for the Jews?]
Miriam Mogilevsky wonders why there are so many movies about the Final Solution [Hollywood Hearts Holocaust]
And, in a post appropriate to the day, I call for a renewal of our idealism. [The Audacity of Hate]
The hardest part of writing this post was choosing these stories from the wealth of amazing articles we’ve printed! So as you’re looking at them, feel free to peruse.
Shanah tovah!
Ben
