Religion

December 3, 2008

The Rebbe’s army soldiers on

Chabad has become so ubiquitous that Jewish travelers around the world, no matter how far they stray, have come to expect a Shabbat meal, a holiday celebration and a warm welcome from one of these Chasidic couples, no questions asked. All that's required is a knock on the door.

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Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Obama's cousin-in-law Rabbi Capers Funnye battles to open the gates of Judaism [VIDEO]

Funnye, 56, has dedicated his life to chiseling away at the conventional, but increasingly inaccurate, conception of who is a Jew.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Angeleno pushes effort on recognizing conversions

When Lorin Fife converted to Judaism some 30 years ago, his experience with the Orthodox rabbis who presided over his year of study and conversion ceremony was one of warmth and acceptance.

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Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Rabbi Funnye reaps nachas over his cousin-in-law Barack

Capers Funnye has a lot in common with his cousin-in-law, Barack Obama: They have both shattered longstanding barriers and are both committed to reaching across traditional divides.

Rabbi Harold Schulweis. Photo by Yosi R-PozeilovWednesday, November 26, 2008

Facing God, and the challenge of individual conscience

Monday, November 24, 2008

Postville Jewish community struggles to survive after raid

After former Agriprocessors executive Sholom Rubashkin was arrested earlier this month, Rashi Raices joined several dozen members of this town's Jewish community in volunteering the equity on their homes to guarantee his return to face trial.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Agriprocessors closed—now where’s the beef?

The kosher meat market is in a tailspin as production at the Agriprocessors' meatpacking plant in Postville, Iowa, which had been operating at a fraction of its normal capacity since May, finally ground to a halt this week. The company, whose meat was sold under the labels Rubashkin's and Aaron's Best, among others, filed for bankruptcy Nov. 4.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

A Moderate Proposal

The start of the event was running late -- did I mention it was a Jewish event? -- and midway through our green room conversation, Hitchens pulled out a small bottle of Johnnie Walker Black. He emptied it into a 16-ounce clear-plastic cup and drizzled in some Crystal Geyser spring water. And he began sipping.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Passage of Prop. 8 reveals rift between denominations

Jewish voices had joined both sides of the bitter and costly Proposition 8 debate leading up to Election Day. Reform and Conservative leaders largely condemned the stripping of civil rights from a fellow minority population, while Orthodox officials praised constitutional protection for the biblical definition of marriage.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

VIDEO: Sukkot services with the Happy Minyan

The spirited, eclectic Happy Minyan of L.A. davening Hoshana Rabba concluding Sukkot. Guest chazans, New York's Yehuda Green and Lazar Wax, lead and deliver the cantillation.

Would-be converts  Maritza and Borys Valvarde.Thursday, November 6, 2008

‘The Longing’ documents crypto-Jews caught between two worlds

When Gabriela Böhm set out to create her documentary, "The Longing: The Forgotten Jews of South America," several years ago, she hoped to profile an as-yet-undiscovered secret community of Crypto Jews -- descendants of Jews forced to flee the Spanish Inquisition who continued practicing rituals covertly.

Agriprocessors and local energy officials are working 
on a plan to maintain the electricity at the firm's plant 
in Postville, Iowa. (Ben Harris)Thursday, November 6, 2008

Troubles at meat plants prompt increased fear of kosher beef shortages

With the kosher meat producer Agriprocessors facing mounting financial problems, and a fire-related shutdown at another major kosher producer, industry insiders say major supply disruptions are inevitable and kosher consumers should brace themselves for some rough times

Firm founder Abraham Aaron RubashkinThursday, October 30, 2008

Rubashkin son arrested, Agriprocessors fined $10 million in kosher slaughterhouse probe

Sholom Rubashkin. son of Agriprocessors founder Aaron Rubashkin, was arrested by immigration officials and was due to appear in federal court today.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

If you stream Kol Nidre, they will watch

When Rabbi Naomi Levy conducted Kol Nidre services this year, her congregation numbered 200,000, stretching from Canada to Colombia and from Japan to Norway

Rabbi David WolpeWednesday, October 22, 2008

We were intended by God—we’re not afterthoughts

Belief is not a static illusion to be knocked down at the introduction of a new scientific hypothesis or discovery. Faith is an orientation of soul, a posture toward God's universe that finds expression in many religious traditions.

Christopher HitchensWednesday, October 22, 2008

Religion: The ‘first and worst’ explanation

It belongs to the terrified childhood of our species, before we knew about germs or could account for earthquakes. It belongs to our childhood, too, in the less charming sense of demanding a tyrannical authority: a protective parent who demands compulsory love even as he exacts a tithe of fear.

Gary Wexler's momWednesday, October 22, 2008

Searching for the soul

In my new capacity as the son of an Alzheimer's victim, I have many questions. Some of them are Jewish questions. One kept me up for hours the other night, leading me to my bookshelf at 3 a.m., combing through volumes to see what insights I might glean. What happens to the soul during Alzheimer's?

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

L.A. Orthodox rabbis want business ethics to be kosher, too

Seeking to accentuate Jewish traditions that place a premium on ethical integrity, Los Angeles Orthodox rabbis are encouraging local businesses to sign up for a new seal of certification that ensures employers are treating workers fairly and humanely

Brad A. GreenbergWednesday, October 15, 2008

Reporter’s Notebook: A Christian makes teshuvah

When I looked around I saw a packed, spiritually moved house of Jews, many who looked a lot like me: Chuck Taylor sneakers, thick plastic glasses, the curly hair that always has reminded me of my family's story.

Judaism by Choice board members Jill Sperling and Misty Zollars 
with Miller Introduction to Judaism program director Rabbi Neal 
Weinberg. Photo by Rachel HellerThursday, October 9, 2008

Jews by Choice bolster ties with first Israel mission

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Rabbis on anti-gay marriage Prop 8: Yes, no, maybe

Same-sex marriage is likely to remain a hot-button issue in the presidential race, with Prop. 8 backers looking to Sen. John McCain for ideological support, and opponents to Sen. Barack Obama.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Restoring Moses

Parshat Ha'azinu (Deuteronomy 32:1-32:52) It isn't nice to say, but if I were hanging out in the desert with my friends -- all excited about moving in to a land of milk, honey and great falafel -- and an old man with a stutter insisted on "speaking into our ears" a weird doom and gloom poem, my likely remark would be: "That dude's got issues."

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Sermon of the Year

Film directors call this end-of-day light the "golden light." It's not the bright, naked light of the mid-day, nor the dramatic darkness of the night. It's the light that bridges those two worlds. Spiritually, it's the time when the past and the future caress each other -- the day is still fresh in our mind, but we can feel the breath of the approaching night.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Holiday Heartburn

"Not eating is not suffering," he said, "it's elevating ourselves to a state of transcendence. The fast, on Yom Kippur, reminds us how little material we really need; that we can do with less meat, with less bread, with less of everything."

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Yom Kippur Dilemma

We have more synagogues and more freedom to use them here in Los Angeles than we did in Iran, but that doesn't mean we're any closer to fulfilling the true purpose of gathering in a house of worship.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Kabbalah Centre sues spin-off Universal Kabbalah Communities

Legal experts said the Kabbalah Centre's claim would hinge on its ability to demonstrate that Universal Kabbalah Communities infringed on trademarked material.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Torah Slam: Post-denominational, multi-rabbi Bible salon draws overflow crowd [VIDEO]

The U'netaneh Tokef prayer-poem (who shall live and who shall die) can be seen as ominous or beautiful, depending upon the prism of the interpreter. Rabbi Naomi Levy pointed out that the prayer was written by "one dude" and should not be seen as a divine writ.

Blogs

Opinion Section

12/3
Opinion: Open House
12/3
Complete coverage of Mumbai Chabad attack

Community Calendar

12/4/08 6:30 pm
TORAH STUDIES

12/5/08 9:00 am
Writing with Light

12/5/08 9:00 am
A Literacy of Images: Nancy Newhall and the Art of Photography

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