05 Nov
Latest

Hail, Obama. I guess.

I have been absent from this blog for a few weeks, after a few half-hearted attempts at an entry on rumors about whether Sarah Palin might have some recent Jewish ancestors, and one about yet another stupid comment by Jesse Jackson. I dug in briefly, and learned a few things. First, Sarah Palin is not Jewish, not that anyone, at this point, would care if she is the reincarnation of the Vilna Gaon (who was a genius, so that particular reincarnation would be a stretch). All they care is that she and Todd catch the next snow machine back to Wasilla, post haste. And about Jesse's dumb comment (something to the effect that a President Obama would put an end to "Zionist" control of American foreign policy) - I just couldn't get myself too worked up about a...

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07 Oct
Latest

Jewish population's up. Quick, hit the panic button….

Ok, time to get your assimilation anxieties sorted out. The numbers of Jews and kinda-sorta Jews and non-Jews married to Jews or who are children or grandchildren of Jews is growing, and that's good, right? No, says Israel's Jewish Agency Chairman Ze'ev Haifetz, that's bad. Well, it's good that the number of "real" Jews is increasing—by 70,000 worldwide in the last year, according to the Jewish Agency. But how about those kinda-sortas? The ones who can become Israeli citizens under the Law of Return, but who might not pass Halachic muster for purposes of marriage to a "real" Jew under Israeli law. Apparently we are producing too many of that sort here in the U.S. The recent population study by TJA says that there are more than 11 million Americans...

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23 Sep
Latest, Religion

Reform Judaism Promoting Politics?

By Inthemoment contributor Larry Kessner A few years ago, not long after my daughter's Bat Mitzvah, I was talking to a good friend who had attended the service at our large, Washington DC-area Reform temple. My friend, whose politics are similar to mine, was raised Baptist in South Carolina and educated at Princeton and Georgetown. He is funny, very well-informed and culturally aware (meaning discard any preconceived notions you may have about Southern Baptists) I asked him what he thought of the service, which was the first he had attended at a Reform synagogue. "Interesting," he said. "I half expected Ted Kennedy to march up there any minute. The sermon sounded like the Democratic Party platform. Is that what your religion is about?" "Good question," I responded. In the current issue of Moment, several rabbis discuss the role of...

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18 Sep
Latest

Jews Go Gaga for Eggheads

By InTheMoment contributor Larry Kessner. Maybe in the Czech Republic, poets can become president, but not here. Maybe in France they like their presidents to be descendants of historians, education ministers, and even kings, but not here. Here, if you spring from the loins of the upper classes, like Bushes 41 and 43, you need to remember to gnaw on pork rinds, "clear brush," and drop your g's. (Oh yeah, and say "nuke-u-ler"). American Jews, by a wide margin, prefer intellectuals—actual or imagined—to cowboys or warriors when it comes time to vote for a president. But time and time again, when the votes are counted, they are disappointed. In America, even if you are a member of the intellectual elite, like Hillary Clinton, you want to make a point of challenging your opponent to a...

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