Week of January 17, 2025
Week of January 17, 2025
(JNS) — Israel’s Security Cabinet met on Friday morning to approve the Gaza ceasefire deal with Hamas. The accord, whose first phase is to see the phased release of 33 hostage—alive or dead—over a six-week period starting on Sunday, in return for the release of 1,000 terrorists from Israeli prisons, will then be brought to the full Cabinet for a vote on Saturday night. The ceasefire was expected to go in effect at 12:15 p.m. on Sunday, with the first three hostages, women, to be freed around 4 p.m. However, this may be delayed until...
One million paper clips are piled high on black construction paper on the stage, lit by a spotlight. Above it, the flickering black and white film of Jews walking to their deaths in a Nazi concentration camp is being shown on a theater-sized screen. And standing in front of the stage is the 17-year-old Edgewater High School senior who orchestrated this scene, along with several other exhibits that make a powerful stand against antisemitism and all sorts of hate. The first thing you notice...
(JTA) - A synagogue with more than 100 years of history in Pasadena, California, burned down overnight as fires swept across parts of Southern California. The fate of a Chabad center about 40 miles away near the coast was unclear as a major fire flared in the Pacific Palisades, one of three different blazes destroying structures and threatening lives in multiple pockets of the greater Los Angeles area. Additional Jewish institutions lay in evacuation zones, while others took preparations in...
(JTA) — Two blocks away: a school reduced to ruins. Across the street: rubble. Under the door: ashes. And yet at Kehillat Israel, things look much the same as they did at the beginning of the week, before the fires. That’s what the clergy found when they reentered their synagogue’s building on Thursday in the wake of the blaze that devastated Pacific Palisades. A reporter with NBC News who himself grew up at Kehillat Israel accompanied Rabbi Amy Bernstein, Rabbi Daniel Sher and Cantor Chayim Frenkel as they took stock of their...
(JNS) — Justin Trudeau announced on Jan. 6 that he will resign as Canadian prime minister after his replacement assumes control. “I am a fighter, and I am not someone who backs away from a fight, particularly when a fight is as important as this,” he said outside his Ottawa home. “But I have always been driven by my love for Canada, by my desire to serve Canadians and by what is in the best interests of Canadians—and Canadians deserve a real choice in the next election,” he added, per the New York Post. “It has become obvious to...
(JNS) — U.S. President Joe Biden awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 recipients on Saturday including George Soros and Hillary Clinton. The White House citation for the nation’s highest civilian honor noted Soros’s rise from surviving the Holocaust as a young Hungarian Jew to becoming one of the richest men in the world. “Soros escaped Nazi occupation to build a life of freedom for himself and countless others around the world,” the citation read. “Educated in England, he settled in America as he became an investor and...
(JNS) — The State of Tennessee adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of Jew-hatred in May 2022. On Jan. 2, Mark Pody, a Republican member of the state’s Senate, introduced a resolution that called for that definition of antisemitism to be used when the state makes legal determinations about bias. “We want to go forward to have a safe place for Jews in Tennessee,” Pody told JNS. “There have been things this year that have targeted the Jewish community that are not acceptable in Tennessee,...
Jews were targeted by the majority of hate crimes in NYC last year By Ben Sales (New York Jewish Week) — Jews were the target of the majority of hate crimes in New York City last year, according to statistics reported Monday by the NYPD. Data compiled by the department showed that there were 345 anti-Jewish hate crimes across the city in 2024, nearly 54% of the 641 total hate crimes tallied. The next-largest category of hate crimes were those related to sexual orientation, at 78. The number of antisemitic hate crimes in 2024 was slightly...
(Israel Hayom via JNS) — The Hind Rajab Foundation filed two legal complaints in Argentina in the past week against Israelis who the organization claims committed war crimes while serving in the Israel Defense Forces. One of the complaints, filed on Jan. 7, targeted a former soldier who fled to Argentina from Brazil following a Brazilian court’s investigation order regarding suspected crimes against humanity. The complaint that triggered the Brazilian legal proceeding was also filed by HRF. Another war crimes complaint, including charges...
(JNS) — Absent the violence, controversy and false claims of election fraud of four years ago but amid tighter security, Congress certified the electoral vote count on Jan. 6 that made Donald Trump the 47th president of the United States. This time around, no one in Congress rose to object to the votes, no one claimed the election was stolen, no one filed lawsuits to throw out the ballots, no one planned rallies to demand that the results be overturned and no one claimed the vice president could unilaterally reject state-certified electoral...
By (New York Jewish Week) - The first sign that things were changing at Schechter Queens came when the school began receiving requests from parents to let students hold an Orthodox prayer service. As the first Jewish day school named for Solomon Schechter, an influential rabbi in Conservative Judaism, Schechter Queens only offered egalitarian prayer, where boys and girls prayed together. But families at the school pressed for students to have the option to choose a non-egalitarian option. That...
Longwood, FL -Rabbi Yanky and Chanshy Majesky of Chabad North Orlando, in partnership with the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, will be leading a trip to Israel from March 17 to March 24, 2025. This exclusive eight-day experience aims to foster unity and connection, leaving a lasting impact on participants' hearts, minds, and souls. Rediscover Israel in a New Light Show Solidarity: Stand in solidarity with Israel by visiting soldiers on the front lines, former hostages, and communities affected...
Speaking at a fundraising event held at the home of Barry and Donna Render, newly elected State Senator Randy Fine confirmed that he is running for Florida's 6th congressional district U.S. House of Representatives. Governor Ron DeSantis called for this special election to fill the seat vacated by Republican incumbent Michael Waltz, who was chosen by president-elect Donald Trump to be White House national security adviser. Keith Dvorchik, who has known Fine for more than six years and worked with him when he was CEO of the Greater Orlando...
(JNS) - A 25-pound porcupine has dug a lair under the front porch. Ants have raided the pantry. Rats have infested the neighbor's home, and there's no running water. These were just some of the issues that awaited Ruti Arbel, 78, on Monday during one of her first visits back to her home in Kibbutz Yiftach since she and her husband, Oded, were forced to leave in October 2023 due to the outbreak of war with Hezbollah in nearby Lebanon. "It's nice to be back, but I just look at this place and the...
(JNS) — President Isaac Herzog awarded the Israeli Presidential Medal of Honor to eight global leaders for their outstanding contributions to Israel and the Jewish people. The medal recipients include Ronald S. Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress; Maurice Lévy, French executive; Malcolm Hoenlein, former executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of American Jewish Organizations; Julie Platt, chair of the Jewish Federations of North America; Sir Frank Lowy, Australian philanthropist and Holocaust survivor; Sir Trevor...
(JNS) — For more than a year, Jews inside and outside the State of Israel have been besieged by false claims of the “genocide” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. The rhetoric of the pro-Hamas mob — “We don’t want no Zionists here,” “Go back to Poland” and so on — has been ugly enough to make Nazi Germany proud. The real-world impact — arson and gun attacks on synagogues and other Jewish institutions from Canada to Australia, a pogrom in Amsterdam, physical and sexual assaults on those wearing identifiably Jewish symbols,...
(JNS) — Inauguration day is around the corner, and unlike in January 2017, when Donald Trump took the oath of office for the first time, now seems calmer and, in some corners, more celebratory. When Trump won the presidential election in 2016, the knives were out and being sharpened, so to speak. Not so this time around as Trump’s landslide victory has his enemies and detractors retreating somewhat. New York Times columnist Bret Stephens gave up his “Never Trump” status. Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is hanging out with Jared...
(JNS) — America has long been known as the land of opportunity, welcoming people of all nationalities, backgrounds and religions to its shores and giving them a chance to build prosperous lives. This has been especially true for Jews, who, despite bouts of antisemitism, have thrived in the United States. Recent studies, however, suggest that this period of acceptance and tolerance is eclipsing as Americans face religious discrimination in the workplace. Last month, the Anti-Defamation League released a study titled, “Jewish and Israeli...
(JNS) — Rabbi Eliezer Simcha Weisz, a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council of Israel, has penned a letter to Pope Francis following the pontiff’s ongoing criticism of the Jewish state during the Swords of Iron war. The text of his letter follows. “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a burning torch.” — Isaiah 62:1 Dear Pope Francis, Your words and actions regarding the State of Israel are not merely...
(JNS) — For months, President Joe Biden’s detractors predicted that he would deliver a last-minute betrayal of Israel, akin to President Barack Obama’s infamous abstention on a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements in 2016. When the “surprise” came, it was not the one critics anticipated. Rather than silence them, however, their outrage was fueled by the unexpected admissions of his secretary of state. First, we were told Biden would pull an Obama immediately after the election in November. Instead, he...
(JNS) — The last 15 months have been a tragedy for the individual and a triumph for the collective. History is rife with examples of this dichotomy. The tragedy of Oct. 7, 2023, and the ensuing aftermath across the world has created an earthquake that has realigned world Jewry in the most profound of ways. Israeli Jews and those in the Diaspora have gone through a type of catharsis and have regained a sense of purpose that was dangerously close to being lost. Many American Jews had convinced themselves that they could blend into society and...
(JNS) - Meet some of the women at the Jack Satter House in Revere, Mass. They are bold, they are real, they are honest and, as part of a campaign for their Tenants Association, they are not fully clothed. This is why: Throughout the year, the Tenants Association provides in-house programs and outings, some of which require bus transportation to venues. For an annual fee of $15, residents have the option to be a member. But like everything these days, prices are up, and the association, as it...
(JTA) - "A Complete Unknown," the new Bob Dylan biopic set in the early 1960s, ends years before the singer's controversial "gospel" period. Starting with 1979's "Slow Train Coming," Dylan recorded three albums exploring his apparent embrace of Christianity. For his 1980 tour, he played gospel music exclusively. It was a confusing time for Dylan's Jewish fans. As the movie suggests only obliquely, the guitar-carrying hitchhiker who tried to pass himself off as a former carnival barker was...
(JTA) —The antique silver menorah. The shabbos candlesticks. The tiny tefillin set. The last remnants from Europe that my grandparents, all Holocaust survivors, managed to shlep to America. And I need to get them out of my house. Right now. I had this thought during a moment, last week, when the Palisades Fire raced unchecked in all directions, including south toward my Santa Monica home. I threw a few documents, clothes and photo albums in a pile on the living room floor, and on top of those...
Managing diabetes can feel overwhelming, but there are ways to cope with the stress and take control. Here are 10 tips to help: 1. Acknowledge your feelings. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, it’s important to seek help. 2. Talk to your healthcare providers about your emotions. They can offer support and guidance. 3. Address concerns about others’ reactions to your diabetes with your healthcare provider. 4. Explore assistance programs for the costs of medicines and supplies. 5. Open up to family and friends about your struggles with...
(JTA) - Peter Yarrow, one-third of the hit-making 1960s folk group Peter, Paul and Mary, and a Jewish activist who promoted Israeli-Palestinian coexistence and other progressive causes, died Tuesday at age 86. The longtime resident of Manhattan's Upper West Side entered hospice last month. The cause of death was bladder cancer. Yarrow was a Cornell graduate playing in Greenwich Village clubs during the early 1960s folk revival when manager and musical impresario Albert Grossman, who also...
MORNING MINYANS Chabad of South Orlando — Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. and 10 minutes before sunset; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 8:15 a.m., 407-354-3660. Congregation Ahavas Yisrael — Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.; Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-644-2500. Congregation Chabad Lubavitch of Greater Daytona — Monday, 8 a.m.; Thursday, 8 a.m., 904-672-9300. Congregation Ohev Shalom — Sunday, 9 a.m., 407-298-4650. GOBOR Community Minyan at Jewish Academy of Orlando — Monday – Friday, 7:45 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Temple Israel — Sunday,...
