By DEBORAH FINEBLUM (JNS) – You shall love the convert for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.— Deuteronomy 10:19 There was a moment some 2,500 years ago when a recently widowed Moabite princess refused to abandon her aging mother-in-law and return home—a moment that made history as she became the first convert in recorded Jewish history. Ruth’s words—“Where you […]

By LARRY LUXNER When Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg’s husband, Dave Goldberg, died suddenly during a 2015 vacation to Mexico, Sandberg found solace in Jewish tradition. Attitude Of Gratitude “One of the ways you find strength is to remember what is still good in your life,” Sandberg said. During the coronavirus crisis, actress, scientist and author Mayim Bialik has turned to […]

By Rabbi Dr. RAYMOND APPLE In the synagogue in which I was brought up, Shavuot attracted a much smaller crowd than any other festival. My rabbi held office at that synagogue for many decades and his verdict was simple: “It’s just like Cinderella”. In the old fairy tale Cinderella was the poor girl whom nobody valued until at last she […]

By Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger, “Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative” May 26, 2020, https://bit.ly/36vxcHv More on Jewish holidays: Smashwords, Amazon 1. Impact on the formation of the US The holiday of Shavou’ot (Pentecost) commemorates the legacy of Moses – the Exodus, the Ten Commandments and the Torah (the Five Books of Moses) -which had a significant impact on the key […]

ALBANY– As gathering together physically is not an option this year, the holiday of Lag B’Omer will be noted by the Colonie Chabad Jewish Center with a zoomed Lag B’Omer event. Guest cellist Sholom Eagle of Toronto, Canada will perform on the holiday, Tuesday, May 12, at 6 p.m. Eagle started playing cello at the age of five. Beginning with classical […]

By BABETTE DUNKELGRÜN (JTA) – In Season 2 of the Hulu comedy “Shrill,” based on the book by Lindy West, there’s a restaurant scene in which the central character’s mom closely monitors her daughter’s food intake. It’s clear the tendency is familiar — even in their relationship as adults, the mother discloses her almost political stance against dessert and bread […]

ALBANY–This year’s “518 Car Parade” of the Capital District Chabad will be held on Tuesday, May 12, along New Scotland Ave. between Albany Medical Center and St. Peter Hospitals. The 2020 Lag B’Omer parade will thank the Medical COVID-19 responders, said Rabbi Israel Rubin, head of the Capital District Chabad. The exact time and route have yet to be announced. […]

By JACKSON RICHMAN (JNS) – Aron Bielski is the youngest and last living member of the Bielski brigade, which he founded along with three of his brothers. Their activities are widely known as one of the largest partisan groups that rescued Jews during the Holocaust. He was born on July 21, 1927, into the family of David and Beila Bielski, who […]

By RON KAMPEAS NEW YORK CITY (JTA) – With its glittering assembly of stars, jokes that worked and attendees who could, well, sing, it was the Zoom Seder you wished you had. The Saturday Night Passover Seder that aired on YouTube Saturday, April 11, brought together dozens of celebrities and raised $2.6 million for the CDC Foundation, the nonprofit wing […]

Eleven Holocaust survivors will join to light candles to commemorate the Shoah as part of an online community program to note Yom HaShoah on Monday, April 20, at 7 p.m. Hedi McKinley, Ruth Mendel, Ivan Vamos, Murray Jaros, Jack Zuckerman, Carl Rosner, Bert Weinberg, Leslie Diamond, Toby Clyman, Harry Rosenfeld, and Anne Rosenfeld will be featured in a program sponsored […]