Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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Here are the members of the USA water polo team who will be competing at the 20th Maccabi Games in Israel this week. The two Orlando players are in the center row: Zev Halikman is in the middle and Ory Tasman is on the far right....
This summer, the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida is inviting visitors to join them in a conversation about the local, national, and international struggle for civil rights in the United States. This is a unique opportunity for visitors to learn about this history while inspiring them to take action in their own communities. Terrance Hunter, the program coordinator for the Holocaust Center, sees these exhibits as a unique opportunity to reflect on this history. "The wo...
(JNS.org) U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley slammed the U.N. Security Council Thursday for its inaction on Iran, which she says has "repeatedly and deliberately violated" sanctions. "The Security Council has failed to even take minimal steps to respond to these violations," Haley told a council briefing on Iran. "We must show Iran that we will not tolerate their egregious flaunting of U.N. resolutions." Jeffery Feltman, the U.N.'s under-secretary-general for political affairs,...
(JTA)-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shelved a controversial bill that would have made the haredi Orthodox-dominated Chief Rabbinate the only body authorized by the government to perform conversions in Israel. Netanyahu's office announced Friday that the legislation will not be considered for six months while a "team" he will appoint comes up with recommendations for an "arrangement" on the issue. The decision comes after an outcry by the Reform and Conservative movements and American Jewish...
(JTA)-American Jewish leaders are calling it a betrayal. They say that 17 months after achieving an historic agreement to provide a non-Orthodox space at Judaism's holiest prayer site, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reneged in a Cabinet vote Sunday, effectively canceling the deal and caving to the interests of his haredi Orthodox coalition partners. Netanyahu disagrees. Far from killing the compromise, he believes the vote has given it new life. And far from betraying Diaspora Jewry,...
Mortar shells fired from Syria into the Israeli Golan Heights Saturday prompted the IDF to respond with a retaliatory strike in Syria, purportedly killing Syrian soldiers. Despite the incidents, a military escalation between Israel and Syria is unlikely and is in neither side's interest, said Prof. Efraim Inbar, former director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Israel's Bar-Ilan University. "This is nothing new for the IDF to retaliate to spillover from Syria," Inbar told...
JERUSALEM (JTA)-Israeli politicians rushed to condemn their government's decision Sunday to freeze a plan promoting pluralistic prayer at the Western Wall. Voices from across the political spectrum, including members of the governing coalition, criticized the vote by the Cabinet as a reckless affront to American Jewry. They warned it could weaken the community's support for Israel. "Canceling the deal constitutes a severe blow to the unity of the Jewish people and communities as well as the...
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando's "Summer of Love" has arrived. The season of saying "thank you" to the local Jewish community kicked off June 19, ushering in a full week of activities involving Federation staff, volunteers and friends. Early that Monday morning, Federation staff members delivered fresh doughnuts to the offices of Orlando's local Jewish agencies-The Jewish Pavilion, Central Florida Hillel, the Kinneret Council on Aging, Jewish Family Services of Orlando, The Roth...
As the school year comes to an end, Central Florida students who depend on free and reduced lunches will no longer have access to proper and nutritious food. To help with this situation, JFS Orlando kicked off its Summer Food Drive, which began July 1 and continues through July 31. During the summer months, JFS Orlando provides roughly 40 percent more families with food from the Pearlman Emergency Food Pantry. Help JFS keep the pantry stocked and consider donating non-perishable food items to help feed those in need. JFS Orlando is also...
The Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando’s RAISE program offers paid employment opportunities and social skills training to young adults with special needs. Online application for a limited number of fall positions opened on June 26, 2017. RAISE participants work for 6-12 months at five partnering agencies and alongside Vocational Rehabilitation in their community job search process. RAISE builds self-esteem, fosters independence, educates and inspires participants and their families to set new goals, supports and encourages social growth, a...
Yes, he was a Jew. But he was killed because he was an American. The tragedy of Otto Warmbier took a strange twist shortly after his death last week. It was only then that we discovered that the young American imprisoned by North Korea to 15 years of hard labor at a one-hour show trial for the crime of stealing a propaganda poster as souvenir was Jewish. After his release following 17 months of brutal captivity and return to his parents in the United States, in a coma and suffering severe brain damage, we learned what was purposely suppressed d...
The Jews of Israel are watching Muslims near and far killing themselves, and contemplating horror scenarios of a serious threat from Iran, Hezbollah, or some other evil source. There are near daily efforts of individual Palestinians to attack Jews, but for the most part, the Muslim front is quiet for us while chaos prevails among those who have declared their intention to destroy us. The furor among Jews has ratcheted up to what we haven’t seen in some time. Optimists or the indifferent see it as another round in the rituals of conflict, w...
There are four important aspects to the government’s decisions on Sunday relating to egalitarian prayer at the Western Wall and the conversion bill. The first is that by and large, the headlines of the stories distort rather than explain what the government decided. The second is the nature of the American Jewish community’s response to the government’s moves. The third important aspect of the story is what the government’s decisions tell us about how the government perceives Israel’s relations with the American Jewish community. Finally,...
Dear Editor: It looks like this will be a repeat year. The United States Postal Service will not be issuing a new Chanukah stamp design in 2017. This means it will be up to each local post office to order Chanukah stamps. Past history has shown that a vast majority do not do so. They claim it an “old” stamp and they do not reorder old stamps. So, it is important that you that go to your local post office and tell them to order Chanukah stamps now so they have them in time for you to purchase them. Chanukah is early this year. It begins the nig...
The headlines of the Jewish press this week were filled with stories about angry American Jews arriving in Israel and denouncing the Israeli government’s decision regarding egalitarian prayer at the Western Wall. Jerry Silverman, head of the Jewish Federations of North America, called the government’s decision “a direct insult” to diaspora Jewry and vowed to launch a “campaign” to “fight back.” Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said the battle to reverse the decision is “worth fighting for.” A statement issued by the...
MORNING AND EVENING MINYANS (Call synagogue to confirm time.) 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 I...
Music has become of such vital importance to the senior community. Recent studies have revealed that music has the capacity to alleviate stress, evoke powerful memories, instill a sense of vitality, and afford socialization opportunities for senior citizens. The Jewish Pavilion is always looking for talented entertainers to help enlighten the seniors. Please contact the office at 407-678-9363 to share your talent....
(JTA)-Israeli race car driver Alon Day's rise to the highest ranks of NASCAR has been an unexpected one for a variety of reasons Here's one of them: The 25-year-old has done the bulk of his training on computer-screen simulators. That's because Israel didn't have a motor sport track until this year. On Sunday, he became the first Israeli to compete in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series-the sport's highest league of competition-when he raced the No. 23 car for the BK Racing team at the Sonoma...
NEW YORK (JTA)-For years, Laurie Grauer had waved a rainbow flag emblazoned with a Jewish star at the Chicago Dyke March, sometimes marching near activists waving Palestinian flags. It had never been a problem. But this year, Grauer was confronted by the LGBT parade's organizers, questioned about her support for Israel and asked to leave because she was carrying the flag. She was one of three women with Jewish flags kicked out of Sunday's parade. Grauer says she was used to Israel being a...
"David and the Philistine Woman" by Paul Boorstin, published by Top Hat Books Trade. The clash of David and Goliath may well be the world's ultimate narrative of good triumphing over evil. Thanks to award-winning documentary filmmaker Paul Boorstin's inspired reimagining in "David and the Philistine Woman," this story acquires the dramatic intensity of a thriller, with unexpected twists and unforgettable heroes. One of the biggest surprises is Nara, the "Philistine woman" of the title. A...
Good for you... I'm speaking of a New York City Subway rider, GREGORY LOCKE, who is a hero in my book because he shared his post on Facebook as a lesson for all of us. I read the following in the current World Jewish Congress (WJC) digest and pass it along to you in its entirety: After a Manhattan subway was defaced with swastikas on several windows and advertisements, a group of riders joined together to erase the racist graffiti. In a Facebook post, subway rider, Gregory Locke wrote that 'the...
On Monday, June 19, the JCC 39ers hosted an educational class titled "Medicare 101" given by Bracha Leibowitz. The 39ers are a daytime group for seniors who get together weekly at The Roth Family JCC for diverse programming. "With all of the changes going on in health care it is very important that seniors stay informed and Bracha gave a great class that was very informative," said 39ers member Shirley Zawatsky. "Planning for retirement can be a very complex and confusing process but I do my...
PSAGOT, West Bank (JTA)-Psagot Winery calls its Sinai wine an "unassuming but distinctive blend" of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. Like all its wines, the bottle is stamped with the image of a coin dating to the first century C.E. found in a chalky cave near its namesake West Bank settlement and inscribed in Hebrew with the words "For the freedom of Zion." The coin, its catalog explains, "symbolizes the preservation of winemaking tradition-offering you a taste of our history." For Yaakov Berg,...
(JTA)-When Wimbledon starts next week, no other Jewish tennis player will be seeded higher than Diego Schwartzman. The scrappy 24-year-old from Argentina, fresh off an impressive five-set duel with perennial star Novak Djokovic at the French Open earlier this month, is No. 37 in the Association of Tennis Professionals rankings. That easily makes him the best Jewish tennis player on the planet. Schwartzman, who was raised in a Jewish family in Buenos Aires, has steadily risen in the rankings...
(The Nosher via JTA)—Keeping a stocked pantry is a deep love of mine; it must run in my blood. My mother also was obsessed with having backups of her favorite products in the basement. There were always boxes of pasta, cans of beans, soup and tons of stuff in our second freezer. Until recently we lived in an apartment, and my desire to keep a stocked pantry was limited by space (although I still tried to stock as best I could). But now with more space in a house, along with a second fridge and freezer downstairs, I like to be ready for anything...
