Journalism by Jewish college students, for Jewish college students.
Israel advocacy, in my formative years, came in buzz words: Democracy meant a free form of government that Israel had and the Arabs didn’t. IDF or Tzaha”l meant the army we should be proud of no matter what. Peace meant what Israel wanted. Terrorism meant the same thing, but for the Palestinians. AIPAC meant pro-Israel….
Last week, I wrote that I was really excited to check out Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim in historic Charleston, South Carolina. It was so great to feel like I was a part of history by attending services there. The stately building was gorgeous and the gift shop definitely consumed a solid hour of my time in…
“For what gives value to travel is fear. It breaks down a kind of inner structure we have. Far from our own people, our own language, stripped of our props, deprived of our masks we are completely on the surface of ourselves. But also, soul-sick, we restore to every object its miraculous value.†Albert Camus…
Vandals defaced the future frat house of Zeta Beta Tau (ZBT) at the University of Memphis, covering it with swastikas and writing “Welcome 2 Frat Row, Jews,” according to reports by the JTA and Eyewitness News in Memphis, Tenn. Thomas Holland, the president of ZBT, suggested to Eyewitness News that the incident may have been…
Who knew the Catholic Church had field trips? As the Jewish Telegraph Agency reports, on January 17, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI will visit a Roman synagogue on the 21st annual Catholic “Day of Judaism†that sponsors dialogue between the two communities. For that matter, I didn’t know there was a “Day of Judaism,†let alone…
Have you ever considered what it would be like to be a rabbi? Depending on your religiosity, there are different rules for who can be a rabbi and what that process entails. The first female rabbi ordained in America was not until 1972. Since then, nearly 400 women have been ordained in the United States….
“Hey, wanna come to Shabbat services with me tonight?” I’ve been hearing that question a lot ever since I started school at Northwestern University. We have both Hillel and Chabad on campus (as well as a new group called Meor Northwestern), so there’s never a shortage of places to be on Friday night. However, something…
Continuing in the vein of Kelly Seeger’s post last week in the New Voices blog section, I’d like to use this post to discuss an issue of great import to the Jewish college student: the Great Manischweitz (TM) debate. Of all the ways to bifurcate the world Jewish population, this one might be the most…
Succos is over and everyone around here is getting back into school mode, including university students. Well, actually, my girls still have another week until school gets under way and back into its rhythm- the school’s annual heritage trip to Poland is next week. While not everyone goes, and there is an alternative plan for…
Some could argue that Shabbat worship is at the very crux of religious Judaism. Experiencing the beauty of Erev Shabbat services is one of my favorite things about being a Jew. And perhaps the best thing about Erev Shabbat is that it is never the same in any two synagogues. The benefit of not affiliating…
How naive I must have been, just eleven short months ago, to think that when I elected Barack Obama the only thing I would be getting was a liberal, articulate and intelligent Democratic president focused on reconciliation, progressive policy and transparency in government. What I didn’t know, and what I’ve since discovered by the grace…
Hillel is something that we all have most likely scene and/or participated in during our times at college. Yet what is it? Jewishenyclopedia.com, that well-known source of Hebraic wisdom, recalls the rabbi Hillel, who taught his followers to imitate “his love of peace….his love of man…and…leading mankind to a knowledge of the Law.” Since the…