Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
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Life How to celebrate Shavuot at home
Although Shavuot probably originated as a pre-Judaic agricultural festival marking the first harvest, for Jews the holiday commemorates God’s gift of the Torah on Mount Sinai. Shavuot takes place exactly seven weeks after Passover, on the day when, according to the Torah, God gave the Torah to the Jews. In ancient times, Jews combined appreciation…
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Opinion COVID has exploded Jewish LGBTQ acceptance online. There’s no going back.
Previous Article Next Article Last week, as part of a growing number of virtual speaking engagements, I had the privilege to give a talk to a few thousand Spanish speaking Jews from Latin America, through a program with Limud Buenos Aires. Among the texts and slides that I shared, I also showed a video of…
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Opinion Transforming the warmth of the Persian community into something new
Previous Article Next Article As an Iranian Jew, I take pride in the warmth, hospitality, and intense affection and love that is displayed in my community. We greet each other with two kisses and warm hugs. Grandparents do not gently kiss their grandchildren but inhale them with affection, often whispering “gorboonet beram,” — I will…
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Opinion The (Jewish) world is flat(tening)
Previous Article Next Article The first Saturday in quarantine, my family joined a Zoom havdalah led by our synagogue’s cantor. Faces of our friends and fellow congregants filled a couple dozen boxes on the then-novel screen, many holding flames aloft. I told the cantor we should keep doing it long after the pandemic passed: Havdalah…
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Opinion An opportunity to confront white supremacy and create a Jewish, intersectional future
Previous Article Next Article As a diversity, equity, and inclusion leader within the Jewish world, I am rarely shocked by what I hear. But right before the lockdowns came into effect, I was. I spoke with a few colleagues, friends, and clients about their experiences being in a community facing a pandemic. One colleague said,…
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Opinion A wakeup call: You are your brother’s keeper
Previous Article Next Article Kol yisrael aravim ze baze — all of Israel is responsible for one another. Of course, in the era of the current plague, we might better say kol anashim aravim ze baze — all people are responsible for one another. We are responsible for wearing a mask, for ensuring that those…
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Opinion How the pandemic will change Jewish philanthropy
Previous Article Next Article New York, December 1st, 2021 My dear colleague, I understand you’ve been locked up in an Ashram for the last two years and you’ve missed the pandemic. No great loss, believe me. Lucky you to come down from the Himalayas and be vaccinated right away at the Gates Center in Katmandu!…
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Opinion Chabad emissaries are stepping into communal gaps – for good
Previous Article Next Article The Brooklyn Botanical Garden is a stone’s throw from my house. I pass its gated entrance on my walks along Eastern Parkway several times a week and promise myself to visit soon. But the last time I strolled under its gorgeous cherry trees was two years ago. It’s a little like…
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Culture Is RFK about to ban goyslop — and what on earth is that?
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Fast Forward Why Neo-Nazis marched in Ohio this weekend, and almost every weekend in the U.S.
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Yiddish אַ זעלטענע זאַך אין פּאַריז — אַ קאָנפֿערענץ בלויז וועגן די ליטוואַקעסA rare event in Paris — a conference just about the Litvaks
צוליב דעם וואָס ס׳רובֿ פּאַריזער אַשכּנזים שטאַמען פֿון פּוילן, קומט די ליטוויש־ייִדישע קולטור נישט אָפֿט צו רייד
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Fast Forward Who is Marc Rowan, the Jewish investor reportedly in the running for Trump’s Treasury secretary?
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