Thursday, March 28th 2024   |

Opinions

Op-ED: Why the Reconstructionist movement is rebranding

By RABBI DEBORAH WAXMAN 

PHILADELPHIA (JTA) — “I don’t know any Jews who go to temple.”

The line is from a remarkably poignant scene in the 2004 film “Garden State,” in which Zach Braff’s character explains to his love interest, played by Natalie Portman, a few things that most non-Orthodox American Jews know about large suburban synagogues.

“The Jews I know,” Braff continues, “they go on one day, on Yom Kippur, the...

OP-ED: Jewish men need to talk about #MeToo

By RABBI DANIEL BRENNER

(JTA) — Like a lot of other Jewish men, I have been quietly keeping a scorecard of the number of Jewish men in the #MeToo headlines.

Harvey Weinstein, Dustin Hoffman, Jeffrey Tambor, Mark Halperin, Leon Wieseltier, James Toback, Israel Horowitz, Al Franken, James Levine, Jeremy Piven, Woody Allen, Brett Ratner, Michael Oreskes, Bruce Weber — all have been accused in one way or another of sexual assault or harassment, primarily in the workplace. Let’s not forget that Anthony...

OP-ED: The two-state delusion is the greatest obstacle to peace

By JEFF BALLABON and BRUCE ABRAMSON

WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Arab-Israeli conflict is entering a phase more likely to lead to resolution than any that preceded it. The mindless mantra “there is no alternative to the two-state solution” is giving way to reality. The Palestinian Authority has never been a partner for peace. A 23rd Arab state shoehorned into Israel would solve nothing. And plenty of superior, principled alternatives exist.

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OP-ED: What really happened at the original Trefa Banquet

By JONATHAN D. SARNA

BOSTON (JTA) — In an article written for J: The Jewish News of Northern California, David A.M. Wilensky describes with gusto the supposedly mouthwatering delicacies, including Peanut Butter Pie with Bacon and Pulled Pork Potato Kugel, consumed this month by “rabbis and foodies” at the Trefa Banquet 2.0 in San Francisco – complete with a communal blessing and a historical lecture justifying these juicy transgressions on the...

OP-ED: The late hour resolution and lingering questions why

By ALAN SMASON, Editor 

Frankly, after news leaked out after yesterday’s passage of a resolution proffered by members of a pro-Palestinian advocate group for BDS, we were stymied. How in the world could such a resolution be placed on the agenda of the New Orleans City Council without prior notice, much less could it be passed without objection?

Under typical rules, such resolutions or ordinances up for a vote require...

OP-ED: Don’t destroy the 2-state solution

By JONATHAN GREEENBLATT

In past decades there were several occasions – the 1993 Oslo Agreement, the 2000 Camp David summit, and the 2007-08 Annapolis process – when it looked as though Palestinian leaders could be on the verge of accepting Israel in a serious and responsible way. Unfortunately, that hope foundered as former Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat and then Mahmoud Abbas refused to make serious, specific responses to significant Israeli...

OP-ED: My sisters, I hear you

By NESHAMA CARLEBACH

I. HINENI

My friends, I humbly come before you. I am grateful to have this privilege to share what I hope will be a contribution to the conversation we are now engaged in in this moment of transformation. 

I acknowledge that who I am – my very name – might make it hard to receive anything I might wish to offer. Still, our tradition teaches us that...

OP-ED: More joy. Less oy.

By RABBI JOSEPH H. PROUSER

A Muslim resident of the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Ras-al-Amud was widely and enthusiastically celebrated by Jewish media outlets this fall.

Ihab, a bus driver, decorated the Egged bus that he drives to look like a succah, in celebration of the joyous Jewish harvest festival. He adorned the bus ceiling with bamboo mats (skhakh) and hanging plastic fruit and colorful garlands. Before that,...

OP-ED: The Jewish youth group dating scandal that isn’t

By MAYA WASSERMAN

(JTA) — I’m sorry … sometimes adults just don’t get it.

A number of articles have been published recently in the Forward about a “point system” game played by members of United Synagogue Youth (and other Jewish youth groups) now and in the past. According to the game, teens keep an informal tally of their “hookups” with other members, earning points for their partner’s position in the youth group hierarchy.

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OP-ED: Ending the silence on abuse

By JONATHAN S. TOBIN

(JNS.org) — A story about movie mogul Harvey Weinstein (pictured) has led to what may well be a crucial turning point in the way sexual misconduct is viewed, writes JNS Editor in Chief Jonathan S. Tobin. Credit: David Shankbone via Wikimedia Commons.

A story about movie mogul Harvey Weinstein (pictured) has led to what may well be a crucial turning point in the way sexual misconduct...