Blogs

In this week's Torah portion, Emor, we find this sentence in the very beginning: 

“And the Lord spoke to Moses:  Speak to the priest, the sons of Aaron and speak to them . . .” (Leviticus 21:1)

Any discussion on the topic of “the costs of assimilation” into American society is likely to draw a crowd, especially in New York, and especially in our current climate. But when the Live from the NYPL series announced that acclaimed authors André Aciman and Nicole Krauss would be speaking, the April 22 event sold out.

Two U.S. congressmen have introduced legislation calling on the Palestinian Authority to prevent a Hamas takeover of the West Bank.

Reps. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) and Daniel Lipinski (D-Ill.) introduced a resolution Tuesday urging the Palestinian Authority to work for political stability and calling on President Mahmoud Abbas to create a presidential succession plan.

The two politicians also spelled out the need for expanded political freedom in the West Bank.

Speaking to a group of about a thousand activists from the Alzheimer’s Association today at their annual advocacy forum, National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins shared the bad news that sequestration has already cost the America’s national medical research budget $1.7 billion dollars.

Last week's Torah reading consisted of two parshiot: Acharei Mot ("After the Death") and Kedoshim ("Holy Ones"). I cannot but think that these passages perfectly encapsulated the events last week.

A lucid and penetrating piece from a blogger who is the father of a son with autism. He writes about the double-bind of being the family member of a loved one with disability: how if you share the positive moments you worked so hard to achieve, you run the risk of your friends jumping to the conclusion that everything is hunky-dory, mainly because they would feel more comfortable if that was the case.

In the Golan Heights in 1974, an Arab girl stares at the camera from behind a “stop” sign; an Israeli soldier buys a fruit juice from a stand right behind her. 

April is Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month, an opportunity for all Americans to commit to supporting people with autism spectrum disorders, ensure they are afforded opportunities to reach their full potential, and appreciate the contributions individuals on the autism spectrum make to our families, communities and society.

We have been referred to, and refer to ourselves, as the “People of the Book.” Actually, we seem more to be the people of the question. The Torah is filled with questioners, challengers, activists. The Talmud: more questions, clarifications, debates, arguments over every word, nuance and point.

Ambassador Yehuda Avner is the 84-year-old rock star of Jewish media these days.

His 2010 memoir, “The Prime Ministers,” based on the notes he took as a senior advisor to five Israeli prime ministers in their private meetings with world leaders, is still a best-seller and still in hard cover. A full-length documentary film, based on the book, will have its New York premiere on May 7.