Interview | Lisa Pleskow Kassow: Director, Trinity College Hillel and Senior Associate Chaplain for Jewish Life
It’s the 70th anniversary of Trinity College Hillel. How has the college changed since you started almost 17 years ago?
Is Intermarriage Good for the Jews?
The very meaning of intermarriage has shifted with these demographic changes. In earlier periods, intermarriage was generally seen as a rejection of Jewish identity and a form of rebellion against the community. These days, intermarriage doesn’t necessarily spell the end of an active Jewish life or of Jewish lineage.
A Historic Synagogue Welcomes the Future at National Pride Shabbat
It’s standing room only for National Pride Young Professionals Shabbat Dinner, located in the non-denominational, non-traditional congregation’s social hall.
Book Review | The Origin of the Jews: The Quest for Roots in a Rootless Age by Steven Weitzman
As the subtitle of the book says, we live in a rootless age. People everywhere, not just Jews, seek their roots, their ancestry, their genetic makeup. We yearn to discover who we are; alas, our tools are not always up to the task. But there is pleasure in the pursuit, and we should be grateful to Weitzman for being a reliable guide.
Michael Chabon: A Life of Fact & Fiction
A conversation with novelist Michael Chabon can easily jump from Michael Jackson song lyrics to the history of spaceships. And while his love of all things quixotic can be a lot to digest, his intellectual openness and curiosity have resulted in a compelling and innovative body of work.
Book Essay // Refracted Identities, Mirrored Lives
Suleiman’s new book, The Némirovsky Question: The Life, Death and Legacy of a Jewish Writer in 20th-Century France, explores Némirovsky’s tragic career and the deteriorating civil society of pre-World War II France that first nurtured the writer and then ultimately turned on her. Drawing on parallels to her own life, Suleiman makes of the story a meditation on allegiance, foreignness and assimilation—one with uncanny echoes for today’s politics.
Letter From New Haven: A Syrian Family in Trump’s America
On election night, a group of Jews welcomed a Syrian family. Now they wonder what to say when the refugees ask: Will we be safe here?
Ask The Rabbis // How do we balance civility with disapproval for others’ politics?
INDEPENDENT
We should learn from our sages. Even though they disagreed vehemently on issues of law and politics more than 2,000 years ago, they would leave...
The New Israeli Americans
The days of shame about living in America are over. But can this diverse group of immigrants hold onto their culture? And is there a chance that they can become a unified political voice?
Book Review // Why Not Say What Happened
WHY NOT SAY WHAT HAPPENED:
A Sentimental Education
Morris Dickstein
Liveright Publishing Corporation
W.W. Norton
2015, pp. 320 $27.95
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Review by Christopher Lehmann-Haupt
In the foreword of his affecting memoir, Why Not...
Book Review // The Girl from Human Street
The Girl from Human Street by Roger Cohen // Alfred A. Knopf // 2015, pp. 320, $27.95
Do the Religious Beliefs of Supreme Court Justices Influence Their Decisions?
A Moment Symposium with Robert Barnes / Lyle Denniston / Tony Mauro / Sarah Posner / Leslie C. Griffin / Stephen Wermiel / Marshall Breger / Emily Bazelon / Dahlia Lithwick