Judaism

Israel must be more than just the nation-state of the Jewish people - opinion

Beyond security, Israel must serve as an anchor for Jewish identity, culture, and global engagement.

 People watch the military airshow as part of Israel's 75th Independence Day celebrations, in Saker Park, Jerusalem, April 26, 2023.
YAKOV SCHACHT, business leadership coach.

Yakov Schacht: How a Ninjutsu coach navigates life in Israel’s war zone

AS AN astronomer, Ralbag influenced Copernicus.  Pictured: Nicolaus Copernicus Monument in his hometown of Torun, Poland.

This month in Jewish history: History, memory, destiny

‘Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad with her, all who love her.’

Shabbat Rosh Hodesh: At the threshold of renewal


Parashat Tazria-Metzora: Turning lemons into lemonade

These parashot deal at length with a unique phenomenon described in the Torah – tzara’at, which are marks or changes that appear on the walls of a house, on clothing, or on the body.

'Spirituality can grow without diminishing anyone,' says the writer.

Shabbat candle lighting times for Israel and US

See Shabbat candle lighting times for your area.

Shabbat candles

Families protest after four Border Police soldiers disciplined for having barbecue on Shabbat

“My daughter feels she was treated like she was nothing,” one of the soldiers' fathers said. “Even if there was a breach of orders, where is the proportionality?"

 A Border Police officer conducting operations, May 2025.

Israel’s shift from seeking approval to shaping global narrative - opinion

It took the international responses to the October 7 massacre and the vicious antisemitism, the horrors, and the deaths for Israel to mature.

PLO chairman Yasser Arafat (L) waves with prime minister Yitzhak Rabin (R) and US president Bill Clinton after the signing of the Israeli-PLO peace accord, at the White House in Washington, in 1993. Israel was forced into Oslo to reduce international isolation, and it backfired, the author notes.

As Ohio again tries to block Hebrew Union College’s restructuring, a new rabbinical school emerges

Ohio Attorney-General Dave Yost takes legal action to prevent the closure of Hebrew Union College’s Cincinnati campus, citing donor intent and history.

The campus of Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio, January 21, 2019.

From rain to dew: Prayer and the meaning of uncertainty - opinion

The shift from rain to dew in prayer reveals a deeper message about resilience, fear, and spiritual growth.

Rain falls in mid-August in the upper Galilee

How a Norwegian pastor helped Jews pray in secret during the Holocaust

A remarkable bond between a pastor and the rabbi of the Jewish community of Trondheim helped Jews through the

Rabbi Jacobson stands next to the monument in Trondheim, 1947.

Perpetual Jewish family traits: Jewish genealogy, history explored by Am haZikaron Institute

Using an exact-sciences approach endorsed by a committee of 55 Nobel laureates, Am haZikaron can reveal the unique characteristics of one’s clan that have been preserved for centuries.

A SECTION of Jonathan Vidgop’s family tree on the walls of the Am haZikaron office in Tel Aviv.

Simon Betuel: Cosmetics producer by day, artist by night

Influenced by the palettes of Rubens, Klimt, Vrubel, and especially El Greco, Betuel executes deeply Jewish paintings in both figurative and abstract styles.

SIMON BETUEL in his home studio.

A deeper reflection: Why the Passover story still matters today - opinion

The lesson that lingers is that freedom is not just about leaving a place of hardship; it is about creating a reality where that hardship does not repeat itself.

FOR ISRAEL in the here and now, these ideas are playing out in real time