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worship

For downtown’s Persian Jews, work plus worship equals success

Fast-paced techno dance music blasts through Chikas, a retail clothing store off Santee Street in the heart of downtown Los Angeles’ Fashion District, which many call the Garment District. Robert Mahgerefteh, the store’s owner, helps the dozen or so young women looking for great deals on the latest fashions.

How I returned

But as much as she loves the pulpit, Naomi, like me, finds the modern synagogue problematic. She believes that Judaism offers people a sense of purpose, a mission to heal society and a fulfilling spiritual path, but that too often standard synagogue services don\’t attract or inspire Jews, much less compel them to commit to a community.

Reconstructionists try to manage growth

When Dorshei Tzedek, a small Reconstructionist congregation in West Newton, Mass., began an explosive growth spurt in 1997, some of its members were concerned.

How to Be Jewish 101

There are more than 3,000 synagogues in America. Why do some of them struggle week after week to make a minyan, while others are bustling with energy, song and laughter?

Tajikistan Razes Its Sole Synagogue

Tajikistan\’s government has begun demolishing the Central Asian nation\’s only synagogue, offering in exchange a plot of land far from where most Jewish community members live.
The work started last month. So far, demolition crews have destroyed part of the synagogue\’s property, including the mikvah (ritual bath) and classroom space, according to sources in Dushanbe, the capital city. The synagogue\’s yard was turned into a dump for the refuse.

The Lowdown on Ritual and Worship

\”Why are Rosh Hashanah and especially Yom Kippur so important to my Jewish partner? He almost never attends services the rest of the year, isn\’t observant and doesn\’t even know what he believes about God. Yet, at this time of year, he insists on attending services. What\’s the big deal with these holidays?\”

There are both \”official\” and \”unofficial\” answers to these questions. Perhaps not surprisingly, the unofficial explanations are often the more significant ones. The official answers (to which I\’ll return shortly) speak in terms like judgment, sin, repentance, life and death. The unofficial answers have something to do with the complicated puzzle of American Jewish identity.

Chaplain Crosses the Line for the Cross

Military chaplains have a proud history in the U.S. military, and most of them uphold the mission of the Chaplain Corps in the various services to America\’s troops and to ensure their right to free exercise of religion.

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Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.