Obama has (almost) survived his first year in office unscathed—the anniversary of his election was Nov. 4–and how better to celebrate that than a bunch of juicy articles on racism….you know, that crisis, the mini-daily civil wars, most people thought he’d solve (before healthcare, before wars in distant lands) by entering the oval office. Do… Continue reading Obama’s First Anniversary Celebration
“A recent ADL poll showed that 12 percent of Americans hold anti-Semitic views – but among African-Americans, the figure is 28 percent, and among foreign-born Hispanics it is 35 percent. ‘If 20 years from now the largest caucus in Congress is Hispanic, they will have a great deal to say about where foreign aid goes,”… Continue reading Jews Reflecting on Hispanic Power
In the latest issue of Moment Magazine, “The New Jewish Convert” looks at the experiences of converts from diverse backgrounds: “A Muslim, a Mormon, a Baptist, a Protestant, a Chinese American, an African American, a Mexican American and the great-granddaughter of a Nazi officer tell their stories.”
“The New Assimilated Jews” (Ynetnews.com) There are so many things wrong with this article, I don’t even know where to begin. Yael Mishali writes: “In my view, an assimilated Jew is anyone whose Judaism has no significance in his own eyes. He was born Jewish, and now just leave him alone. In my view, an… Continue reading Conversion in the News Roundup: From Crypto-Jews to Black Jews to Angry Jews
These comments on my guest post on the Frum Satire blog, “Living Life from Under My Jewfro”, caught my eye and I wanted to share them with you: (They have been slightly edited.) Funny story #1: “Hahahah, I get the Jesus question all the time!!! I recently had a [conversation] with an Asian Christian friend… Continue reading Jesus Who?
A rabbi once told me that talking about intermarriage from the pulpit was a pretty bad idea all around. Too many rabbis have done it and assumed that the audience is homogeneous, a group of Jews that does not include converts, Jewish children of interfaith couples, Jewish children with non-Jewish and intermarried relatives and even… Continue reading Talking about Assimilation
Italian and Jewish? Why not! Antonio Sabato Jr. as a “Nice Jewish Boy”. As a teen, oh the posters I put up on my walls of this one. Sigh.
The first podcast from Be’chol Lashon focuses on Anusim, Jews who were forced to abandon Judaism against their will, but now are trying to do whatever is in their power to return to Judaism. In this podcast, Rabbi Juan Mejia argues that some of the was Anusim are currently treated in the Jewish community are… Continue reading Spotlight: Rabbi Juan Mejia and the Bnai Anusim
Last week, the local paper, The Riverdale Press contacted me for an interview. Somehow, they had stumbled upon my blog. During the really-early-in-the-morning interview, I hoped that I wouldn’t embarrass myself too much. Mostly, I didn’t. Check out: “Blogger chronicles her Catholic past, Jewish present”
I don’t necessarily agree with all of these articles but they definitely caught my eye this past week. “Gay vs. Orthodox: A Deadly Turn in Israel’s Culture War? (Time) This article points the finger at the ultra-Orthodox segment in Israel for the attack on a local gay youth club. “The Intermarriage Dividend” This article uses statistics to… Continue reading Jews in the News Roundup
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 