Short Takes

City Countering ‘Inaccurate’ Bris Story

07/17/2012 | Hella Winston | Special To The Jewish Week

City health officials are pushing back this week after an article in the religious publication Yated Ne’eman seemed to cast doubt that an infant recently contracted a fatal herpes virus from metzitzah b’peh, the controversial bris technique of oral suction.

The piece, published last week, contains “a number of inaccurate statements and omissions,” according to a spokesperson from the city’s Health Department.

East Village’s Musician Rabbi To ‘Beat’ It

07/17/2012 | Adam Dickter | Assistant Managing Editor/Online Editor

It’s curtains for the Jazz Rabbi’s tenure at the Sixth Street Community Synagogue.

Greg Wall, the tenor sax-playing, part-time spiritual leader of the embattled East Village Orthodox congregation with a diverse membership and a history of conflict is moving on, he announced on the congregation’s Facebook page Tuesday.

Federation’s Fundraising Dips A Bit

07/12/2012 | Helen Chernikoff | Staff Writer

UJA-Federation of New York raised slightly less in donations this year than last in a campaign that reflected a trend toward fewer donors in difficult financial times.

Shamir And The Kohanim

07/11/2012 | Michele Chabin/Jerusalem | Special To The Jewish Week

The death of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Shamir over the weekend and the government’s decision to have his body lie in state inside the Knesset building presented a religious problem for the country’s kohanim.

Generally, deceased Israeli leaders lie in state in the Knesset’s courtyard, but the summer heat necessitated that Shamir’s body be placed indoors, officials said.

Shalit: ‘Thank You’

07/11/2012 | Stewart Ain | Staff Writer

Gilad Shalit, the 25-year-old Israeli soldier freed by Hamas terrorists in a prisoner exchange in October, thanked the Jewish community here last week for its support during his more than five years of captivity.

“I want to thank everybody for their efforts — here in the U.S. and all over the world,” he said in Hebrew at a special meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

Shamir And The Kohanim

07/03/2012 | Michele Chabin/Jerusalem

Generally, deceased Israeli leaders lie in state in the Knesset’s courtyard, but the summer heat necessitated that Shamir’s body be placed indoors, officials said.