Inclusion of Jews With Disabilities is Focus of New Leadership Conference

JNS.org – Weekly services, Torah studies, aliyot to the Torah, sitting shiva, and even trips to Israel. These are experiences shared by many Jewish Americans affiliated with synagogues and Jewish communal organizations. But for Liz Weintraub and her husband, Philip, full inclusion in life events such as these wasn’t always a foregone conclusion. That is, until they became members of B’nai Israel Congregation in Rockville, Md. Although Liz Weintraub, 47, grew up in a family that was engaged in Judaism in Virginia [...]

‘Rabbi Rocketpower:’ The Superman of the Jewish Holidays

JNS.org – Superman was created by two Jews (writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster), and the latest buzz about the upcoming “Batman vs. Superman” movie concerns the selection of Israeli actress Gal Gadot to play Wonder Woman. But today’s Jewish children have a more religiously relevant caped crusader to look up to. Rabbi Susan Abramson, one of the first 50 women to ever be ordained as a rabbi and currently the longest-serving female rabbi in the state of Massachusetts, [...]

20th-Century American Music Owed Much to Jewish Artists

JNS.org – Discuss these names—Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Benny Goodman—with author/musician Ben Sidran, and you will understand how being Jewish, the Jews’ hunger to fit in, and their ease at doing so helped shape both the core of their identity and many of America’s greatest songs. “Jews in America were able to access a popular imagination because they were, in some ways, experts at being outsiders wanting to be accepted. They had a long tradition of this. A [...]

11 Behind the Scenes Shots of Israel’s Gal Gadot, Recently Cast as Wonder Woman

Bike Tours Offer New Way to See Jerusalem

JNS.org – JERUSALEM—What kind of ground can you cover in three hours in Jerusalem? Start at First Station (the renovated train station), go to the Haas Promenade for views of the city, continue past Mishkenot Shaananim and the historic windmill, through the Russian Compound, on to Jaffa Street, over the “harp” string bridge crossed by light rail passengers, through the Supreme Court area and the Knesset, past the Israel Museum to the Valley of the Cross, and back through the neighborhood of Rehavia. The [...]

‘Fiddler on the Roof,’ Approaching 50th Anniversary, is Strong as Ever

JNS.org – Worldwide performances of “Fiddler on the Roof” attest to its cultural power, as it evokes the yearning for tradition in a changing world. What is behind its staying power? According to Alisa Solomon, author of the new book “Wonder of Wonders: A Cultural History of Fiddler on the Roof,” it is the show’s balance between the universal and the particular. During a recent symposium at Princeton University celebrating the upcoming 50th anniversary of the play’s Broadway opening on Sept. [...]

Hanukkah Recipes From ‘Queen of Kosher’ Jamie Geller

Recipes for latkes and other Hanukkah treats.

Beatles, Spice Girls, and Newsies Should be on Your Chanukah Playlist

Musical ideas for celebrating Hanukkah.