Opinions

There are six fast days in the Jewish calendar year. Two are very serious and are 25-hour fasts, namely Yom Kippur and Tisha B’Av. The other four fasts are morning until evening only. 

Who would have believed that re-entry into the workforce would be something we are grappling with today. Fifteen months out of the office, working virtually, and all of our interactions via Zoom became the way of doing business since the onset of the pandemic in March of last year. Now, we are changing the way we work again – going back to the office in a hybrid model.

Editor’s note: The following is an excerpt from Rabbi Grussgott’s sermon at Kehilath Israel Synagogue on May 29th.

Irrational hatred of, and violence toward, Jewish Americans has been occurring with alarming frequency, and, as President Biden has said, “This must stop.”

I was shocked and deeply saddened by the recent article in the Chronicle titled “Dozens of U.S. Rabbinical sign letter calling for American Jews to hold Israel accountable for alleged human rights abuses.”

Jews are being attacked on the streets, while dining in restaurants and while on the way to synagogue. Synagogues are being vandalized and fire bombed. Jews are afraid to wear signs of their religion and some are removing mezuzahs from their homes out of fear.

Nature’s crisis entwines with social violence

Standing at the seashore, I looked to where the deep water met the hazy afternoon sky. A jellyfish, bobbing along on waves washing the beach, caught my attention. Looking more closely, I realized that it wasn’t a living being but a swollen, blue-tinted plastic bag.

Yahsher Koach to Rabbi Rudnick for an article he wrote (“Take time to focus on loving healthy relationships,” March 11) honoring Rabbi Dr. Twersky’s work regarding domestic abuse in the Jewish community. When I worked at Safehome, he and I talked about its presence in our community along with discussions I had with Rabbi Harris, Rabbi Glickman, Rabbi Steigman, and Rabbi Nemitoff.

We recently celebrated Shavous, which commemorates God’s gift to the world of the 10 Commandments/Torah, thus creating a foundation of values for mankind and in a direction of harmony and peace.

(JNS) The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Israel Police announced on Monday the arrest of an Arab Israeli man in his 20s on suspicion of hurling a firebomb that seriously injured an Arab Israeli child in Jaffa last Friday.