Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its affect on Jewish communities around the world.
An often-overlooked spring holiday, Shavuot commemorates the moment when God gave the Torah to the Jewish people. For generations, Jews have celebrated with communal Torah study sessions, called “Tikkun Leyl Shavuot,” that last long into the night, often until dawn. Because of coronavirus, most tikkunim are taking place virtually this year. Although you can’t gather…
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…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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!…
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…
צוליב דעם וואָס ס׳רובֿ פּאַריזער אַשכּנזים שטאַמען פֿון פּוילן, קומט די ליטוויש־ייִדישע קולטור נישט אָפֿט צו רייד
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