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A day before the National Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Conference was set to begin at the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University law professor Alan Dershowitz called Penn the “model campus” when it comes to pro-Israel activism…. Read More »
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BDS Bars Exponent
Jewish Exponent Staff Organizers of this weekend’s Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions conference at the University of Pennsylvania have revoked the press credentials of the Jewish Exponent. Organizers accused the Exponent of engaging in “po… Read More »
BDS Bans Exponent
Jewish Exponent Staff Organizers of this weekend’s Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions conference at the University of Pennsylvania have revoked the press credentials of the Jewish Exponent. Organizers accused the Exponent of engaging in “po… Read More »
Calling All Artists
The Jewish Exponent seeks proposals from artists, preferably local, to design cover art for the Jewish Exponent’s special 125th anniversary edition, which will focus on Jewish Philadelphia through the ages and the Exponent’s role. The issu… Read More »
Going Out on a Limb on Tu B’Shevat
Yoni Stadlin does more than just talk about honoring trees on Tu B’Shevat — he devotes vacations to “speak” for them. A month ago, the 33-year-old Bala Cynwyd native flew to Northern California for his fifth stake-out high in the boughs of… Read More »
BDS Reveals its Real Agenda
A controversial online video promoting this weekend’s National Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions conference at the University of Pennsylvania was pulled by organizers at the height of their effort to advance their agenda targeting Israel…. Read More »
At Tu B’Shevat Seders, We’re Partners With God in Seeing the ‘Literal Fruit’
As a child, Eric Goldberg remembers planting trees in plastic cups and attending mini-seders as part of religious school lessons on Tu B’Shevat. Now a rabbi at the same childhood synagogue, Shir Ami-Bucks County Jewish Congregation, Goldbe… Read More »
New Thinking on Dealing with Trauma
When it comes to the Holocaust, certain stereotypes about survivors persisted for decades after World War II. It was believed, for example, that in order for survivors to begin a new life, they had to suppress their memories of the war year… Read More »
Jews Take Sides on the Particularly Fractious Fracking Debate
NEW YORK To frack or not to frack? As concerns mount over the environmental and public health consequences of hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, Jewish groups are coalescing around a strategy that supports efforts to extract natural… Read More »
Photos Rooted in an Artistic Tradition
Over the past decade, Israeli artist Tal Shochat has scoured her homeland for the perfect cypress, plum, palm and other particular trees. Even after settling on an ideal specimen, she often waited patiently until the plant dripped with lus… Read More »
Iran and Nukes a Heat-Seeking Issue
Washington Israel, the United States and Iran have all gone deep into mixed-signals territory. Conversations with Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Ehud Barak, left one prominent journalist convinced that Israel will strike Ira… Read More »
Going Into the Family Business: Coaching
Why do some children follow in their parents’ footsteps and others seek a totally different path? James “Jamie” Chadwin, head men’s basketball coach at Immaculata University in Chester County, hasn’t thought much about that question. Co… Read More »
Statement Concerning the BDS Conference Held at University of Pennsylvania by Members of the …
We, the undersigned members of the interfaith community are extremely troubled by the national BDS conference (Boycotts, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel) that will be held in Philadelphia, this February, at the University of Pennsy… Read More »
Israeli Missions on High Alert
The Israeli Consulate in Philadelphia was one of several missions in the United States and Europe that received envelopes containing white powder this week. In response, Israeli embassies and consulates around the world raised their alert… Read More »
Survivors’ Group Lauds Germany
New York (JTA) — A U.S.-based group of Holocaust survivors is commending Germany on its determination to fight “deep-rooted” anti-Semitism at home. The American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants in a statement issued… Read More »
Kosher Food Debuts at U.S. Ski Resort
PARK CITY, Utah (JTA) — Kosher food isn’t something one associates with ski resorts, and Utah isn’t a place known for its Jewish population. But after Canyons, the state’s largest ski resort, opened the nation’s first ski-area, glatt koshe… Read More »
Trying Potluck for Shabbat
Bitter cold air swept into Moishe House on a recent Friday evening as 23-year-old Deborah Shroder hobbled through the front door on crutches, somehow managing to climb the steps to the living room on her knees while carrying a sack of cooki… Read More »
Some Filipinos Do Fit In, But Not Without Strain
Mati Wagner Jewish Telegraphic Agency Tel Aviv With eyes closed, it would have been difficult to guess that the female voice with the amazing range singing a Hebrew classic was a shy-looking, 11-year-old Filipina. Kathleen Eligado, the… Read More »
At Sundance, View of Israel Ranges From Critical to Abysmal
Matthew Weinstein Jewish Telegraphic Agency PARK CITY, Utah For Israel fans, it’s all pain and anguish this year at the Sundance Film Festival. Unlike in years past at America’s top independent film fest, when feature films exploring th… Read More »
JCC Honored for ‘Meals on Wheels’
Volunteers for the Klein JCC’s Kosher Meals on Wheels Program last week were recognized with a special citation from the Pennsylvania General Assembly. More than 600 people volunteer each year to prepare, cook and deliver meals to about 50… Read More »
Local Group Gets Behind President on Health Care
A local Jewish group has weighed in on the side of the Obama administration in the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case that will examine the constitutionality of the landmark 2010 health care law. The Jewish Social Policy Action Network — a… Read More »
Oscar Nods to Israel, Allen, Spielberg
Los Angeles (JTA) — The Israeli film Footnote and veteran Jewish filmmakers Woody Allen and Steven Spielberg are up for Academy Awards. Israel’s hope for its first Oscar was kept alive with Joseph Cedar’s Footnote, listed among the five f… Read More »
Local School Leaders Visit Israeli ‘Village’ Devoted to At-Risk Youth
As leaders of two Philadelphia schools for kids who struggle with poverty or foster care, Gabriel Kuriloff and Autumn Graves face extra obstacles as educators. Beyond academics, they aim to make a lasting impact on students who often have… Read More »
A Housing Outpost in Elkins Park
When Shirley Cohen, 91, became the first tenant to move into the Samuel A. Green House in Elkins Park back in October, the $20 million property built to house low-income seniors was something of a construction zone. Federation Housing’s… Read More »
Sundance Takes Some Jewish Steps
Matthew Weinstein Jewish Telegraphic Agency PARK CITY, Utah Call it the Sundance Synaplex. This week, crowds of people are flocking several times a day to Temple Har Shalom in this picturesque ski town, but they aren’t coming for Shacha… Read More »
South Philly Synagogue Opens Doors to Cutting-Edge Contemporary Art
“There’s a feeling that this is the next Brooklyn,” Saul Sudin said, gesturing to the South Philadelphia neighborhood right outside Congregation Shivtei Yeshuron Ezras Israel. Faced with the depressed urban scene surrounding the shul, one… Read More »
Journalist Takes Leap Into Israel’s Political Fray
Linda Gradstein Jewish Telegraphic Agency Jerusalem One of the big open questions after Israel’s social protests last summer was whether or not the one-time mass movement would be able to translate its clout into lasting political power…. Read More »
Anxiety After Attacks
Jessica Leader Jewish Telegraphic Agency New York As Jews in some northern New Jersey communities made their way to synagogue last Shabbat, the scene was slightly different from the typical day of rest. Extra police cars were on p… Read More »
The (Mock) Votes Are In
Avi Romanoff spent months preparing to play the role of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman in a mock school primary. Role playing: (From left) Brett Krasner as Rick Perry, Daniel Horowitz as Newt Gingrich, Joshua Horowitz as Mitt Romney, Ya… Read More »
All Aces in Brazil
America’s top male tennis pros have struggled on red clay, a surface that can cause even surefooted players to stumble, tending to reward patience and endurance, not power and aggression. Hard-serving Andy Roddick, for example, the best Am… Read More »
Countering BDS With Dershowitz and Dinners
A week into the semester, University of Pennsylvania students have begun organizing a grass-roots Shabbat dinner program and, with support from the larger Jewish community, a public lecture from Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz as a r… Read More »
Anti-Missile Delay Raises Questions
Washington · Analysis The decision by Israel and the United States to delay a massive joint anti-missile exercise has set off a frenzy of speculation as to what the move says about relations between the two allies amid mounting te… Read More »
Remembering an Icon
As a young father, Rabbi J. Harold Romirowsky used to buy day-old goods from the local bakeries and secretly leave them at the doors of families who needed help. Over more than four decades at the helm of his Conservative synagogue in Nort… Read More »
From I-95 to Eye on Successful Art
In the fall of 2001, South Philadelphia photographer Zoe Strauss first displayed a series of images on concrete columns beneath a vacant, elevated section of I-95. Then 31 years old, she lacked formal training, hadn’t attended college and h… Read More »
Hail to the Chief of Staff
Washington With this week’s appointment of Jack Lew as President Barack Obama’s new chief of staff, the Jewish community now has a new go-to person in the White House. At the Orthodox Union’s June 2011 leadership mission to Washington,… Read More »
Joining Black, Jewish Voices
Between raising two young boys in Merion Station and working as an organizational consultant, Lisa Kollisch Gottesman said she never had time to keep up her former involvement in choral singing. Members of the Unity Choir rehearse for an… Read More »
Groups Oppose Move on Food Stamps
A number of Jewish groups are opposing a recent decision by the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare to reinstitute an “asset test” for those relying on food stamps — meaning that many individuals with some money in the bank may no lo… Read More »
Nearly 700 Rockets Hit Israel in 2011
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Some 680 rockets, mortars and long-range missiles were fired at southern Israel in 2011, according to the Israeli military. On Jan. 5, the Israel Defense Forces spokesman released the figures compiled by the Home Front Co… Read More »
Area Woman Aids Attacked Ugandan Minister
An evangelical pastor from Uganda who recently began preaching support for Israel is being treated in an Israeli hospital after he was attacked with acid in the capital of the central African nation. A Main Line woman helped the pastor get… Read More »
Jewish Inmate Files Lawsuit
NEW YORK (JTA) — A Jewish prison inmate has filed a complaint alleging that the Nevada Department of Corrections is refusing to serve him kosher meals. It is the second time that Howard Ackerman has taken legal action to ensure that he re… Read More »
Can Santorum Win Jewish Backing?
Rick Santorum’s near-win in Iowa has bolstered his national profile but he may have his work cut out for him in attracting Jewish support. Pro-Israel insiders say the Santorum campaign is now aggressively reaching out to Jewish givers who… Read More »
Knesset Approves Holocaust Bill
JERUSALEM (JTA) — A Knesset committee has approved a measure that would prohibit the use of Holocaust and Nazi terms and symbols. The Ministerial Legislation Committee on Monday approved the bill, which would level a fine of up to $26,000… Read More »
Israel: Hackers Are Terrorists
JERUSALEM (JTA) — An attack on Israeli credit card records is akin to a terrorist attack, Israeli leaders said after hackers published credit card details of thousands of Israelis. A hacker, who belongs to the Saudi-based group XP and has… Read More »
Buchanan May Be Leaving MSNBC
NEW YORK (JTA) — Patrick Buchanan may lose his job as an MSNBC commentator because of statements in his new book that have been called racist and anti-Semitic. MSNBC President Phil Griffin told The New York Times over the weekend that bec… Read More »
Olmert Indicted in Holyland Scandal
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has been indicted on bribery charges in one of Israel’s largest corruption scandals. The indictment filed Jan. 5 accuses Olmert of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in b… Read More »
That Championship Season
Jessica Leader Jewish Telegraphic Agency New YorkAfter the University of Alabama won the Bowl Championship Series football crown by dominating top-ranked Louisiana State University this week, much of the attention and credit has gone to C… Read More »
Shalit, JournaIist Entering Politics
JERUSALEM (JTA) — The father of Gilad Shalit and Yair Lapid, a veteran Israeli journalist, are entering politics. It is expected that Lapid, who announced that he is leaving his position as news anchor for Israel’s Channel 2, will form h… Read More »
Jewish Book Awards Have Two Local Ties
Rabbi David Teutsch, a local author, was among the 2011 National Jewish Book Award winners. Teutsch, who lives in Mount Airy and is the former president of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, received the Myra H. Kraft Award in the c… Read More »
Response to BDS Goes Beyond Chickpeas
Just before finals, University of Pennsylvania sophomore Noah Feit stumbled upon a Facebook link from a newly formed student group affiliated with the international movement that targets Israel with boycotts, divestment and sanctions. Anot… Read More »
Israelis Paying Steep Price for Goods
Jessica Steinberg Jewish Telegraphic Agency JERUSALEM It’s a question many a shopper in Israel has pondered, particularly if they’ve spent time overseas. Why does this fill-in-the-blank cost more in Israel? Whether it’s a box of Cheeri… Read More »
Judea Pearl: Aggrieved Father and A.I. Pioneer
LOS ANGELES A man arrives at an airport for a flight, and as he goes through security, the agent asks some questions. Did anyone help him pack his suitcase? What is the purpose of his trip? Is anyone accompanying him? During the conversa… Read More »
Local Support Grows for ‘Chained’ Woman
Dozens of members of Lower Merion’s Orthodox community traveled to New York on New Year’s Day to rally in support of a local woman who has been trying for four years to obtain a get, a Jewish decree of divorce, from her ex-husband. The dem… Read More »
Temple Set to Cut Hebrew Major, Minor
Starting next year, Temple University students will likely no longer be able to major or minor in Hebrew. Though board members must officially approve the change, officials say budgetary concerns and low enrollments make it practically a do… Read More »
Spinning to Set a Record Fills Room With Ruach
The buzz of more than 800 high school students herded into a huge Center City hotel ballroom at the annual United Synagogue Youth international convention quieted as the lights began to dim. On a screen at the front of the room, words scro… Read More »
A Bold Flash of Lightning on the Terrain
Just a few blocks southwest of the Topography of Terror, in the long shadow the museum figuratively casts, stands Daniel Libeskind’s striking Jewish Museum Berlin. The 12-year-old structure was one of the outspoken architect’s first designs… Read More »
Haredi Violence Makes Waves, Again
Marcy Oster Jewish Telegraphic Agency Jerusalem For several years now, the Jerusalem suburb of Beit Shemesh has been the site of on-again, off-again religious violence. But it wasn’t until the plight of a fearful 8-year-old girl from a… Read More »
A Renewed City Built On Guilt
Berlin “Germans are wonderful pupils,” says Ilan Weiss, an Israeli-born Berliner. “Germans will say, ‘Yes, we are guilty. Yes, we did the wrong thing.’ And they are excellent at it. That’s part of the German personality. They do everything… Read More »
Lighting up New Year’s Eve
What are you doing New Year’s, New Year’s Eve? Lighting up the skies, says Jodie Milkman. She does it with sparkle — and a little help from her friends. Milkman has been arranging the New Year’s Eve fireworks over Penn’s Landing since… Read More »
Beard or Not, Fans Still Flock
Beard or no beard: “a Jew is a Jew is a Jew.” At least, so said Chevra leader Aryeh Shalom and several other Matisyahu fans interviewed before the Orthodox reggae star took to the stage at the Theatre of Living Arts during a Saturday night… Read More »
Attacks by Radical Settlers on Israeli Army Spark Debate
Mati Wagner Jewish Telegraphic Agency Yitzhar, West Bank Charred tires and boulders pushed to the sides of the road leading to Yitzhar, a West Bank Jewish community near Nablus, were among the signs that residents had made an effort to p… Read More »
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