Will Israel Finally Have a Government?
Israel is now about to have a government for the first time in almost a year and a half. How did it get here?
Coronavirus in the Sunshine State: Here Comes Trouble
There are between 6,000 and 8,000 Jewish students at the University of Florida, the largest Jewish population of any public university in the United States,...
Arab-Jewish Equality Does Not Extend Beyond the Medical System
Mahmoud, the nurse working in the hospital in the north, concludes, “the medical system is a place of equality between Arabs and Jews, both for staff and for patients. But outside of the medical system, Arabs are discriminated against in many ways. We have needed systemic solutions to create greater equality for a long time, and now we realize that we needed them even more.”
Recipes from a Quarantined Cook | Asparagus Frittata
Welcome to “A Momentary Kitchen”—a moment of something (Jewish and foody) to do with your loved ones in these uncertain times. Come in, grab a...
Beshert | My Two Bundles of Meant-To-Be
I always wanted to be somebody’s mother. Since I was six, I would fantasize about holding my baby, dressing her and loving her. I shared...
Israel’s Weakened Health Care System Leads to a Near-Total Lockdown
Israel was one of the first countries to respond forcefully to the coronavirus. Many of the steps taken to contain the virus were later adopted...
Coronavirus Serves as Fodder for Conspiracy Theorists, Racists and Anti-Semites
For the vast majority of Americans, the potential collapse of our public health systems and predictions of economic Armageddon have left us frightened and uncertain. But there are some who have found a silver lining in our coronavirus fears: the conspiracy theorists, the racists and the anti-Semites.
Gaza Fears Impending Coronavirus Outbreak
The possibility of a full outbreak of the COVID-19 virus in the Gaza Strip is both likely and terrifying. More than two million people, over half of them children, live in the 139-square-mile area, one of the world’s most highly-populated regions. Unemployment stands at 52 percent and half of the population lives in poverty. Much of the housing and 97 percent of Gaza’s water is unfit for human consumption, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Recipes from a Quarantined Cook | Chicken Soup Two Ways
Welcome to “A Momentary Kitchen”—a moment of something (Jewish and foody) to do with your loved ones in these uncertain times. Come in, grab a...
Confronting Passover, 1865
By 1865, it seemed self-evident that American emancipation resonated with biblical emancipation in powerful ways. But it had not always been so: This new resonance of meaning captured the hearts of American Jews only during the vicissitudes of the Civil War. Before the Civil War, most American Jews did not oppose slavery. There were exceptions, but most Jews voted Democrat, and Democrats were tolerant of slavery. The anti-slavery parties were tarred with nativism, which was distasteful and threatening to a Jewish community composed largely of immigrants and first-generation Americans. And many, including such luminaries as the Reform rabbi Isaac Mayer Wise and the Orthodox rabbi Morris Raphall, considered acceptance of American slavery consonant with the Bible, which documents slavery and sets parameters for its practice within the Israelite community.
Israeli Humor in the Time of Coronavirus
Like most first-world people stuck in their homes, Israelis are using traditional and social media to connect with others and distract themselves. And like everyone...
The White House’s Direct Line to the Ultra-Orthodox May Save Lives
“Unusual times call for unusual measures, so it shouldn’t come as a huge surprise when a key aide to the president of the United States convenes a conference call with leading ultra-Orthodox rabbis, only to urge them to follow government instructions.”—Nathan Guttman