Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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LONDON (JTA) - At a reception of faith leaders at Buckingham Palace the day after Queen Elizabeth's death in September, King Charles pulled Britain's chief rabbi, Ephraim Mirvis, aside for a word. The reception was pushed earlier in the day than originally planned to accommodate Mirvis, since it fell on a Friday. But it ran long and Shabbat was approaching. According to Rabbi Nicky Liss, head of the Highgate Synagogue, Charles asked Mirvis what the rabbi was doing sticking around - didn't he...
(JNS) - Both houses of Congress reintroduced legislation this week to honor the late Roddie Edmonds, who put his life in danger to save Jews during World War II and the Holocaust, and is one of five Americans Yad Vashem names as "Righteous Among the Nations." Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) put the bill up again in the House after an unsuccessful bid last session. This time is different, he told JNS. "I've been here a little longer. I've got a little more seniority, and I know a few more people,"...
(JTA) - Rabbi Harold Kushner, one of the most influential congregational rabbis of the 20th century whose works of popular theology reached millions of people outside the synagogue, died on April 28, 2023. Kushner, who turned 88 on April 3, died in Canton, Massachusetts, just miles from the synagogue where he had been rabbi laureate for more than three decades. Kushner's fairly conventional trajectory as a Conservative rabbi was altered shortly after arriving at Temple Israel of Natick when, on...
(Israel Hayom via JNS) — Preserving the Eternal, an advocacy group that seeks to prevent the destruction of Jewish national heritage sites by Palestinians, has sounded the alarm over what appears to be a deliberate effort to destroy a key landmark in Samaria. El-Unuk, one of the six “Gilgal” sites that were identified by the archaeologist Adam Zertal as dating to the Israelites’ entry into the land following Joshua’s conquest, is in Area B of Judea and Samaria, under Palestinian civilian...
The Holocaust Center is hosting a virtual conversation with Holly Huffnagle, U.S. Director for Combatting Antisemitism with The American Jewish Committee. This Zoom webinar will be held on May 18, noon. She will talk about the agency's response to antisemitism in the United States, and how her experience as a researcher and policy advisor to the Special Envoy for monitoring and combatting antisemitism at the U.S. Department of State led to her current position. This program is part of Community...
Heritage Florida Jewish News is accepting nominations for the 2023 Heritage Human Service Award, which will be presented at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando this summer. “For more than 30 years, individuals who have made major, voluntary contributions of their talent, time, energy and effort to the Central Florida community have been honored with the selection and presentation of this award,” said Jeff Gaeser, editor and publisher of the Heritage. Last year’s recipient was Dr. Edward Zissman. Former recip...
The Jewish Pavilion is known for giving its seniors the opportunity to continue their traditions where they live. The organization works with more than 50 facilities and they always need our help to bring these traditions to life. At many of the communities, The Jewish Pavilion has a Jewish drawer or box filled with what is needed for its parties, services and dinners. After hosting more than two dozen Passover meals and another dozen Purim parties, supplies are running a bit low. Please consider donating any sort of Judaica you might have at...
May is packed with many fun events for adults and kids at the Rosen JCC. Saturday Night Out is an opportunity for parents to plan a night out. Drop your children at the Rosen JCC on May 20, 6 p.m. – 11 p.m. The children get a chance for playground time, reading, games, art projects, a movie and pizza. Parents can plan their own night of fun. Space is limited, sign up at www.rosenjcc.org/sno Summer Camp J starts on May 30 and runs till Aug. 30. It offers General, Sports, Basketball, Art and Dance Camp. Our General Camp offers children a wide m...
(JNS) — One of many United Nations bodies dedicated to the Palestinians announced last weekend an upcoming U.N. commemoration of “Nakba Day,” the supposed “catastrophe” that marked the birth of the State of Israel in 1948. Palestinian and their supporters mark this annually on May 15, one day after Israel announced its independence on May 14, 1948. The day purportedly memorializes the displacement of Palestinian Arabs. During the course of fighting beginning in November 1947, when U.N. member states voted to partition the land, and lasting u...
(JNS) — Israel and the United Kingdom struck a landmark deal last month to heighten trade, technology and security ties for the next seven years. The 2030 Roadmap for U.K.-Israel Bilateral Relations, which was signed on March 21, pledges £20 million (nearly $25 million) in joint funding commitments for technology and innovation projects, which will enable both countries to “remain at the forefront of the technological revolution,” stated the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The announcement of the new agreement came as Eli Coh...
(JTA) — At least two American couples have been caught by Israeli customs for attempting to smuggle a total of more than 650 pounds of Fruit Roll-Ups into Israel, as the country experiences a dire shortage of the snack due to a TikTok craze. A video posted on Tuesday by Mako, an Israeli news website, appears to show a customs official at Ben Gurion International Airport sifting through at least three open suitcases each filled with hundreds of the colorful, sugary treats. An American-accented voice off screen, in a mix of Hebrew and English, e...
Nonpartisan watchdog nonprofit StopAntisemitism has teamed up with the Christian advocacy organization Philos Project to fight rampant Jew-hatred with a billboard campaign across Florida. Troubled by the amount of antisemitism coming from white supremacist groups based in Florida, the Philos Project wants to ensure Jewish Floridians know that groups such as the Goyim Defense League and NatSoc do not represent Christian values. For support, Philos turned to StopAntisemitism, which has been at the forefront of condemning these hate groups....
(JTA) — Among the many honors accruing to King Charles III coronation was a new version of a traditional prayer performed by a British-Jewish children’s choir. United Synagogue, the union of British Orthodox synagogues, commissioned a new recording of “Adon Olam,” a prayer perhaps most recognizable as the conclusion of Shabbat services, and dedicated it to the new king. The rendition was composed by a British-Jewish musician who teaches at a Jewish school and was arranged by the brothers in the indie rock due Portnoy, according to the Jewish...
(FLAME via JNS) — Over the last 75 years, since Israel’s founding, the Palestinians have achieved the dubious distinction of being among the world’s most persistent and brutal terrorists. Against all evidence, Palestinian leaders apparently believe this strategy will eventually achieve self-determination. Note that the world’s most famous and beloved leaders usually motivate their people with an uplifting vision regarding how to achieve freedom, prosperity, or greatness. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech, for example, was an inspir...
(JNS) — Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen’s visit to Baku last week could be a harbinger of things to come beyond bilateral relations between Israel and Azerbaijan. After his meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on April 19, Cohen said the leaders discussed “the strategic regional challenges we share, chief among them regional security and the fight against terrorism.” Although Cohen’s comments did not directly reference Iran—Azerbaijan’s Shia Muslim neighbor—recent developments in the region amplify the significance of...
This year 2023 marks the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and the 75th anniversary of the Jewish State of Israel’s independence. It is also the 35th anniversary of the first annual March of the Living. In that first March of the Living, Jews from around the world descended on the city of Oświecim, Poland to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camps. They walked in the same path that over one million of our people — men, women, children and babies — unbeknownst to them, made on their one-way trek from Auschw...
(JNS) — There is something about the story of the eight Jews who spent more than two years hiding in the secret annex on Prinsengracht 263 in Amsterdam that is irresistible to readers, as well as audiences for plays and movies. The travails of Otto Frank and his family, who were trapped in an intolerable prison with friends and a few others in an attic where they were forced to spend most of their time in silence, were immortalized by his younger daughter, Anne. Aptly characterized by Dara Horn as “everyone’s second favorite dead Jew” in her...
(JNS) — On Sunday, Jan. 8, in Davie, Fla., the organization Teach Florida had their legislative breakfast with members of the Florida legislature. More than 750 people attended to thank the group for its increased financial support for school choice. After the event ended, I spoke to Republican Rep. Randy Fine about my idea to combat the rise of antisemitism in Florida. Fine told me he had the same idea, but it could be helpful if I spoke to the Speaker of the Florida House about it. I approached the speaker and it was clear from his c...
MORNING MINYANS Chabad of North Orlando and Chabad of Altamonte Springs are 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., 407-298-4650. GOBOR Community Minyan at Jewish Academy...
(JNS) — In one image, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is shown, with a Star of David on his forehead, consuming children’s blood. “Can’t get enough,” a caption reads. Another post praised a convicted terrorist and a third included a video declaring the Holocaust a hoax. These were among the items that Canadian realtor Tariq Khan, a realtor in Canada, posted on social media. Khan, a failed 2021 city council candidate in Calgary—the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta—was also a member of Calgary’s multicultural cou...
Good morning from the Judean mountains. I slept well last night but when I woke up I realized that just 30-40 miles from my home, for hundreds of thousands of Israelis it was a horrible night. Again. Palestinian Arab terrorists in Gaza fired over 60 rockets at Israeli communities, trying to kill, maim, and terrorize as many Israelis as possible. Despite the Iron Dome that typically shoots down 90 percent of all incoming rockets aimed at Israeli communities, some broke through and there have...
You never forget your first chicken-cilantro dog garnished with Caesar salad. The first time I ordered one was in autumn 2003, at Jeff’s Gourmet Sausage Factory, a small, glass-front eatery on a stretch of West Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles known for its yeshivas, mezuzah shops and plethora of kosher markets and bakeries. Opened by owner Jeff Rohatiner in 1999, Jeff’s (referred to colloquially as such) is something of a legend in L.A. On any given weekday you can find an eclectic mix of cus...
Most seniors take multiple medications prescribed by many doctors. This is one reason why caregivers need to be aware of the potential for drug interactions. Interactions occur when medications don’t work in tandem with one another. The drugs meant to help you can work adversely to affect your loved one’s health. Prescription and over the counter medications should also be considered when looking at drug interactions. Herbal remedies and food interactions can be a source of concern as well. Medication-Medication Interactions: Drug interactions...
(JTA) - Shows about the Holocaust and a notorious American antisemitic incident picked up several Tony Award nominations Tuesday morning, as Broadway's biggest honors made room for a sizable Jewish presence. Most notably, a revival of the 1998 musical "Parade," starring Ben Platt as the early-20th-century Jewish lynching victim Leo Frank, scored six nominations, including best revival of a musical and a best actor nod for Platt. Jewish lead actress Micaela Diamond also scored a nomination for...
An egg cream was my father's kitchen claim to fame. He assembled them with great flourish - Fox's U-Bet chocolate syrup, cold milk from a glass bottle, and a long, hard shpritz of seltzer, followed by a vigorous stir. Even today, when I drink or think of it, it takes me back to my family's Brooklyn roots, and him. To my surprise, I have discovered that I am not alone in my nostalgic connection to this fancy-named but pedestrian drink. According to Pete Freeman, co-owner, cofounder and chief...
