#jewish-identity

#jewish-identity

I was raised to believe in "Never Again" meaning for all people, Jewish or otherwise. I was also raised to believe in the existence of Israel. However, as I grew older and watched the state that was supposed to represent my ancestors commit atrocity after atrocity, I questioned some of my core values. How can we say "Never Again" while millions of Palestinians live in their homeland and are treated as second-class citizens?

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) said he was offended by Kamala Harris's team asking if he was a double agent for Israel while he was being vetted to be her running mate during the 2024 presidential race. Shapiro revealed he was irritated by the question in his upcoming book titled Where We Keep the Light. The New York Times published some excerpts from his memoir on Sunday evening.

Our hanukiah is ridiculous. I love it precisely for its absurdity; a chunky, oversized piece designed by a dear friend and crafted from aircrete. It looks like a forgotten set piece from The Flintstones. In a family home that also contains challah covers, mezuzahs, kippot and Shabbat candles, our menorah is easily the most overtly Jewish thing we own. Its presence badges us immediately. Brash and proud.

At necessary moments in my life, Tom Stoppard, the preeminent British playwright who died last Saturday, has popped up like one of his frenetic characters, spouting enigmatic lines and leaving me thrilled, confused, and somehow heartened. The first time, I was in graduate school, reading Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, his breakthrough homage to Hamlet; I was surely thinking grad-school thoughts when I came across the line "the toenails, on the other hand, never grow at all"-the best bad joke ever.

For most of my life, I attended reluctantly, dreading the long hours of prayer. I was proud to be Jewish, taking satisfaction in my people's survival and success despite the attempts to annihilate us. But I was also embarrassed by what I perceived as Judaism's weirdness and obsolescence: all those nitpicky laws, and that implausible, reward-and-punishment God I thought was portrayed in the liturgy.

"The Solomons household is what you might call a treasure trove of distinction, reflecting a rich history intertwined with various facets of cultural and national significance."

People who are suffering right now, people who cannot pay their mortgage, people who have been separated from their families, people who are sitting in deportation camps, concentration camps, foreign and domestic, those people do not...

Tamara Yajia reflects on her experiences as a preteen child star, expressing that she was completely sexualized during her childhood while modeling after Madonna.