R.I.P. - Alice Herz-Sommer

Alice Herz-Sommer, believed to be world's oldest Holocaust survivor, dies at 110

Go straight to G-D, Mrs. Herz-Sommer, and truly enjoy eternal peace and comfort...

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Good to know

Worried about germs when kissing a Mezuzah, particularly in a hospital?

Study: Kissing Mezuzahs Will Not Make You Sick

Wondering what a Mezuzah is? Mezuzah - from our friends at Wikipedia...

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Probably not

Can ultra-orthodox Jews live with the web?

The Ultra-Orthodox can't live with many, many things that have come about since the industrial revolution, at least part of the time. I don't think that the internet will be that easy for them to open up to...

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A German intellectual

tries to re-invent history and attacks Israel with a bad poem.

Israel-Iran History, Holocaust Perverted in Grass’s Poem

I read Grass' A Tin Drum many years ago. I now fear that the years haven't been kind to him. Mind you, that was before the world found out about his sympathies during the 2nd World War...

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A story

that makes me impatient for the book to be completed and published.

Tears I Don’t Have Anymore

We have some very concerned and committed youth, today, and yet, in today's money-grubbing culture, I can see a holocaust happening again. Not to the Jews perhaps, but a holocaust none-the-less, and it makes me frightened. What is the worth of a human life? We really haven't learned any lessons. We must always remember.

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So, if this is a way

to try to get him back in the good graces of his followers, it certainly didn't help him with the rest of the world.

http://www.indeonline.com/life/religion/x458334926/Jewish-leaders-offended-by-Ga-preacher-s-ceremony

What an incredibly thoughtless thing to do...

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Gratitude is good

The Chinese Restaurant Association would like to extend its thanks...

It really is terrific that God knows where and what they should eat. He's got good taste, for certain! (But then, He would have, wouldn't He?)

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This is fascinating!

The mystery of Amsterdam's Jewish community

"The discovery of two rare 18th-century books from Amsterdam's Jewish community has left archivist Stefan Litt looking for answers."

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A good article

about some of the dangers of these groups...

The money I poured into a religious sect

"My sister said Kabbalah helped her cope with our mother's death. Would it work for me?"

The only thing I wonder about is in the little author bio at the end of the article. I hope she's a least over 50 because I really dread reading memoirs or autobiographies of young people. It smacks of a certain narcissism...

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It's a new era in Israel

But some people want to keep it in another era, the era of the Temple...

When women and girls are the enemy

"
Gender is the new battleground as ultra-orthodox Jews try to impose their conservative values in Israel, writes Ruth Pollard in Jerusalem."

Fanatics are fanatics are fanatics, and they all end up using the same tactics. Life may be sacred for these people, but property certainly isn't...

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SWMBO heard this

on the radio last night.

Auschwitz jacket given to Montreal museum: Holocaust survivor kept jacket in bedroom drawer for decades

She kept it to remember when times were bad, and not to complain. Amazing!

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A guide

for religious Jews, to help them overcome one of the evils of the internet:

GuardYourEyes.org

It's good to see some of the Jewish community recognizing one of the biggest problems of the internet and trying to do something about it. We hear about it in the Christian community quite a bit...

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History and music

Lost Music of Istanbul's Sephardic Jews

"How a Panoply Sounds Scattered to a New Diaspora"

Music has history, too...

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Sad

'Jewish Indiana Jones' accused of fabricating stories

Was he taking advantage of his own people for profit? Very sad...

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A good story

For Every Life Saved

"The last Yiddish writer. A story from the newest book to come out of KtB, Sweet Heaven When I Die."

And a sad story that ties in with this story:

Chava Rosenfarb on CBC


I've read Mr. Sharlet's other books. I look forward to this one. He's a very good writer...

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No one else can do this

but in Israel, for the Rabbis, it's ok...

The Jewish Ayatollahs and Their Hatred of Non-Jews

But it's not ok to say this, because, you know, any criticism of anything Jewish is racist. You know that.

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A welcome decision

'Lost tribe' of Mallorca Jews welcomed back to the faith 600 years later

"Chuetas recognised by rabbi after centuries of persecution dating back to before the Spanish Inquisition"

It's wonderful to see this, but I have to say that I'm always amazed at the decisions of the ultra-orthodox Rabbinate. You can't always anticipate what their decisions will be regarding 'lost' Jewish groups...

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Public Prayer

Rabbi Holds Prayers in Street After Manhattan Synagogue Burned to Ground

While the fire is a terrible tragedy, I think it's wonderful that they have held prayers in the street. Prayers in time of trouble are a community event, something for people to join in with...

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The letter of the law

Massive 405 Freeway project respects the boundaries of a Jewish tradition

"Metro and Caltrans are working with Orthodox Jews to maintain the thin 'walls' of a vast Westside eruv during work on the 405 Freeway."

It's sometimes a strain to fit modern life into the strict confines of religious law, for adherents of the strict rules...

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A brilliant work

Aiming to Spread Judaism One Book at a Time

It's a great thing for God's chosen people to do for themselves, and for others. The world will be a better place if all our children get to know the Creator through their faith traditions...

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