Empathy
Mercy over Vengeance: Israeli Jews and Palestinians
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In the wake of the heightened conflict between Palestine and Israel, Warren Blumenfeld offers lessons to be learned from Dennis Shepard, who showed his son’s murderers mercy.
Culture
Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi: The Holy Cobbler with a Secret
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I offer a translation of a lesson that seems to capture what Reb Zalman gave to the world, along with a few observations as my parting words to him and, more importantly, as words to those of us who now have the responsibility to carry his message to the post-Zalman era of Jewish Renewal, may it live a long and healthy life.
Empathy
Final report from Jerusalem
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After nearly a month living in Jerusalem, Cherie Brown reflects on the acts of brutality and racism she witnessed, which are put in stark contrast by the acts of great kindness she observed from this same group of people on her journey.
General News
Israeli Vengeance Runs Wild—Violating Torah Law and International Law
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We watch in horror as Israelis march through the streets of Jerusalem and many other cities calling for vengeance. We Jews have to save Judaism from its identification with the policies of the State of Israel toward Palestinians and from the deep anti-Arab racism that has grown deeper and deeper among many Israelis in order to justify the Occupation to themselves.
Culture
Stars and Stripes as Symbols of Pride and Weapons of Hate
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I interpret a true patriot to be a person who, indeed, loves their country, but also one who sees the way things are, and one who attempts to make change for the better. A patriot also views other countries with respect and admiration, as valued members of an interconnected and interdependent world community.
Culture
On Safety and Umbrage
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Does a civil society require conferring on its members the right to protect themselves from evocations of pain? Or would this lead to a society starved of humor, challenge, and the learning that our pain enables? A reaction to, and personal reflection on the New Yorker’s, Jack Halberstam’s latest piece about “trigger warnings.”
Religion
Why Choosing to Believe in God can be a Rational Decision
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Evolutionary psychology provides evidence that choosing to believe in God can be a rational decision and it would appear that when God-belief is based in rationality, it is personally satisfying and socially beneficial. The choice to believe and act upon that belief is up to each one of us.
Healing Israel/Palestine
As a Jew living in America, the past week has changed me forever
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In light of the horrific events of the past week, one author questions whether or not he can remain in support of Israel as a Jewish state while holding on to his progressive ideals.
General News
Happy Birthday America!
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Many people, especially the talking heads on certain cable news networks, think that the scarf on my head diminishes in me the ability to feel loyalty and pride, but they are wrong. I can wear whatever I want, pray however I wish, and still wave the American flag high on the fourth of July. Despite, or perhaps because of, the fact that I am American Muslim I have a deep appreciation of what those two things mean in that combination.
Healing Israel/Palestine
A New Litmus Test on Israel
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Just as a litmus test determines where a chemical is on the spectrum from acidic to alkaline, many American Jews seek to label perspectives on a scale from ‘pro’ to ‘anti’ Israel. Jewish reactions to the divestment resolution passed at the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) show that it’s time for the Jewish community to recalibrate its litmus test on Israel.