Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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(JNS) — In a groundbreaking discovery, Israeli archaeologists have recovered scraps of fabric dyed in royal purple, also known as true purple, dating back to the era of the biblical King David. The remnants of woven fabric, a tassel and fibers of wool, were uncovered in a heap of industrial waste at “Slave’s Hill,” an ancient copper-smelting site in the Timna Valley. “The color immediately attracted our attention, but we found it hard to believe we had found true purple from such an ancient e...
WASHINGTON (JTA) - Statements and appearances by U.S. officials suggest the Biden administration's emerging Mideast strategy: reassuring Israel while resuming ties with the Palestinians ruptured by President Joe Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump. On Tuesday, the acting ambassador to the United Nations outlined plans to reverse Trump administration policies concerning the Palestinians. "The Biden administration will restore credible U.S. engagement with Palestinians as well as Israelis," Richard...
(JTA) - Larry King, the iconic Jewish radio and TV interviewer who never met a subject he didn't seem to like, has died at 87. King died Saturday at a hospital in Los Angeles. His company Ora Media released the announcement and did not list a cause, but King had been hospitalized recently with the coronavirus. King often recalled - sometimes with elaborate embellishment - his roots as a poor Jewish kid in Brooklyn, where he was born Lawrence Zeiger. One of his first broadcast employers, in Miami...
(JTA) — President-elect Joe Biden filled the months before Inauguration Day lining up a slate of Cabinet secretaries, assistants and advisors, many of them Jewish. Biden’s choices reflect a diverse cross-section of American Jewry and possess expertise gleaned from decades of experience in government, science and medicine and law. Here’s a rundown of the Jewish names you should know as the Biden administration begins. Antony Blinken, secretary of state Blinken, a longtime Biden advisor with an extensive diplomacy resume, is the stepson of a Holo...
Jewish Academy of Orlando's Soaring Into the Future Gala, which takes place on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 7:30 p.m., will be held remotely, and will highlight the school's innovations and feature a live and silent auction. The gala will spotlight the school's innovations in learning, including its cutting-edge Innovation Lab and the many technology innovations sponsored by the Katzen family. The Katzen's have provided JAO with state-of-the-art remote learning technology, the latest version of Apple...
JFS Orlando's very own community rabbi, Rabbi E. Arnold (Arny) Siegel, started a new video series this year. Every month, he discusses a different relevant theme that touches on Jewish culture and traditions, hoping to provide advice and guidance through a spiritual lens. Here is an excerpt from his latest video on the topic of "Small Beginnings": "One has to start small. Always remember quality over quantity. Success comes with no guarantee, but I believe building on the pluses and minuses of...
On Jan. 27, Cantor Nina Fine entertained residents of Westminster Orlando with a lively outdoor Tu B'Shvat program featuring songs about trees, sun, rain, and more. Cantor Fine explained what Tu B' Shvat is all about and brought samples of typical Israeli fruits eaten on the holiday for residents to try. The concert ended with a lively song about being a tree, getting everyone on their feet and moving. The weather was perfect and even the trees seemed to enjoy the entertainment. Please consider...
Even though we are in the midst of a pandemic and visitation rights have been decreased at most of the senior living facilities in the area, the Jewish Pavilion has been committed to finding ways to connect with our Jewish residents. Jewish Pavilion Program directors have been able to present in-person programs at a variety of sites - not letting even the most minor celebration go unnoticed. Susan Bernstein visited with residents at Village On The Green and presented a Tu B'shvat Seder, which...
(JNS) - The U.S. Senate confirmed Tony Blinken on Tuesday as the 71st U.S. secretary of state. The final tally was 78-22. Blinken, who is Jewish, will succeed Mike Pompeo as America's top diplomat. Blinken previously served as U.S. deputy secretary of state under U.S. President Barack Obama and was a top adviser to Joe Biden during the latter's 2020 presidential campaign. During his nomination hearing last week in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Blinken said that the United...
(JNS) — As the Biden administration prepares to take on major international issues of the day, a debate has emerged within the American Jewish community over whether the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of anti-Semitism should be adopted into law. A group of left-wing Jewish and Israeli groups issued a joint statement last week in opposition to adopting the definition, claiming that doing so would silence criticism of Israel. The collection of groups — known as the Progressive Israel Network — include Ameinu, America...
(JNS) — A coalition of 51 Jewish and pro-Israel organizations has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism on Thursday. The organizations are members of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, which announced the adoption on Tuesday, the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The two other members of the umbrella organization, Americans for Peace Now and the Workers Circle, did not adopt the definition. Americans for Peace Now, which is highly cri...
(JTA) — On Jan. 6, a sea of heads bobbed and flags flew outside the U.S. Capitol. A closer look revealed a dark hoodie, skull, crossbones and large white letters: “Camp Auschwitz,” followed by “Work Brings Freedom.” That’s the phrase my 91-year-old grandfather, David Moskovic, saw every day in German — “Arbeit Macht Frei” — when he was a 14-year-old Nazi prisoner. For nights following the riots, my grandfather roused to recurring nightmares. The mob at the Capitol brought him back to Auschwitz, 1944. Upon arrival, soon-to-be prisoner...
(JNS) — I offered a relative a ride last week to and from Methodist Hospital in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn, N.Y. I had the choice to wait in the area or drive home and head almost immediately back. I chose to drive home. In another era, I would have gladly stayed in Park Slope — a hip Brooklyn enclave of picturesque brownstones, quaint bookshops and organic-food markets. Over the years, I was happy to browse in Barnes & Noble, step into Starbucks or wander around Prospect Park. No longer. I have now reached my threshold for ove...
(JNS) — Following the U.S. Capitol riot, there has been a renewed emphasis on the threat from white-supremacist hate groups from the Biden administration, much of the media as well as the organized Jewish community. The anti-Semitic imagery seen at the rally organized by former President Donald Trump as well as in the mob storming Congress was frightening. No one should discount the fact that although their numbers are few, such violent right-wing extremists are dangerous. If there was any complacency about such threats, the deadly attacks on s...
(JTA) — On Jan. 27, 1969, nine Jews were hanged in Tahrir Square in the center of Baghdad as half a million people looked on. It was the climax of a campaign of persecution that followed the establishment of Israel, which in turn hastened an exodus of what had been a strong and flourishing community. Of the 160,000 Jews who had lived in what is today Iraq since the destruction of the First Temple, only a handful of Jews remain. When the Jews fled, they were not allowed to take anything more than three sets of clothing and 50 dinars — a pit...
Research about the causes and reasons for the rise of Nazism and the Holocaust, based on documentation has gone on for dozens of years, and has ascertained a variety of long-range processes that coalesced in certain historical circumstances. Yet Dr. Hanan Shai, in the article that was published this week under the auspices of the BESA center (Jan. 15, “A serious moral failure at Yad Vashem”) instructs us, without a flutter of an eyelid, that there were “two central reasons.” The first reason: “that in contrast to the scientific revolutio...
(JNS) — Now is the time to unpack the arsenal of arguments that were not so necessary during the era of former U.S. President Donald Trump, and refresh the discourse about Israeli rights to Jerusalem and to Judea and Samaria, that latter home to half a million Jews. Doing so has become urgent in the wake of the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden, a sworn opponent of Israeli settlements, and his appointment of figures like former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power. Israel is already in low-level contact with the new admin...
MORNING MINYANS (Please note, because of the coronavirus, some minyans have been canceled or held virtually.) Chabad of North Orlando is holding in-person 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.,...
(JTA) — In an annual survey of British Jewish adults, two-thirds said Jews have a future in the United Kingdom — the highest level of confidence since 2015. And the portion of British Jews who said they felt “unwelcome” in the United Kingdom fell from 53 percent last year to 18 percent in 2020. The “Antisemitism Barometer” survey, conducted in November and December by King’s College London for the Campaign Against Antisemitism watchdog group, shows that British Jews are “back from the brink” following the replacement as the head of Labour of...
(JTA) - In this Tuesday's episode of the celebrity genealogy show "Finding Your Roots," pioneering journalist Nina Totenberg and TV personality Andy Cohen learn about the deep Jewish roots of their family trees. In this exclusive clip from Totenberg's segment, she reacts to learning how one of her grandmothers escaped to the United States during the Holocaust by way of Portugal with the help of a sympathetic official. Totenberg, a longtime NPR correspondent, is the daughter of famed violinist...
(JNS) - Israel surpassed the 1 million mark in the number of people who have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. As of Monday morning, 1,106, 506 people had received the two doses, representing 12.45 percent of the population, according to the Ministry of Health. "Over a million people received the second vaccine!' Heath Minister Yuli Edelstein tweeted on Monday. "Israel continues to lead the world with 3.7 million vaccines ... and we start the week with about 200,000 vaccinations a...
(Israel Hayom via JNS) - One winter morning in 2017, a young man arrived at the Kesher Israel synagogue in the heart of Washington. He prayed fervently, as if his heart was filled with a special request. His tallit bag bore the name "Friedman," and it was the only time he had come to the famous synagogue. That same day, his father, David M. Friedman, was undergoing Senate confirmation for his appointment as U.S. ambassador to Israel. In the best tradition of Jewish divisiveness, powerful forces...
"We are the world"... "We are the children." (I'm using this wonderful song, written by Michael Jackson and LIONEL RICHIE, and applying it to the Jewish people because it seems to fit!) The more I look up things about my favorites, the more I find out that they are (or were) Jewish! For instance, who knew Larry King, super-famous radio and television personality, was a member of the clan? (I didn't.) His real name was Lawrence Zeiger. He was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. (like me) and his parents were...
The Squadron, the only air force simulator program with Israeli fighter pilots as instructors, announced the launch of their live, online center of excellence. The center, which is designed for both organizations and individuals, incorporates lessons from the Israel Air Force to promote the ideals and principles it has developed. “Our online courses capture the spirit and heritage of the Israeli Air Force, combining a thrilling flight simulator experience with an actual IAF pilot navigating t...
(JNS) - An 18-month trial began in 2017 at the Nuclear Research Center Negev in Dimona, Israel, when 294 workers in their 50s with abdominal obesity were randomly divided into three groups: healthy dietary regimen, Mediterranean diet and green Mediterranean diet. (JNS) A green Mediterranean (MED) diet reduces intrahepatic fat more than other healthy diets and cuts non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in half, according to a long-term clinical intervention trial led by Ben-Gurion University...
