To name a thing is to call it into being. In the beginning were the heavens and the earth. And darkness was on the face of the deep. “Let there be light.” And there was light, and it was good.…
6 ways to show you are proud of your Judaism
On Saturday, October 27th, a gunman opened fire in a Pittsburgh synagogue killing 11 innocent Jews and injuring 6 others. The attack occurred at Tree of Life Congregation in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh. With the occurrence of this tragedy, the…
On Solidarity, Peoplehood, and Empathy: A response to the Los Angeles vigil supporting the those hurt and lost in Pittsburgh
Jews from all over Los Angeles came together on Sunday for a vigil in support of the families who were affected by terror Saturday morning in Pittsburgh. With a growing list of 64 Jewish organizations sponsoring the vigil, the question…
United we stand; and why we’ll never fall
As I made myself some tea and schmoozed at the coffee station after Shabbat lunch this week, I heard a surprising announcement. “Let’s take a moment of silence to honor the people we lost in today’s tragedy.” I waited for…
Candlelight vigil for Pittsburgh synagogue shooting held at Federal Building
Jews and people of other faiths gathered at the Federal Building at the intersection of Veteran Avenue and Gayley Avenue Sunday evening for a candlelight vigil in solidarity with the Pittsburgh Jewish community after 11 people were killed in a…
Charlie Hebdo and the past, present and future of French Jewry
This past Monday night, UCLA students held a vigil for the victims of the Charlie Hebdo and Hyper Cacher grocery store shootings, as well as for the policewoman who was killed in a related shooting. 8:30 p.m. found about 70…
Resilience: the ultimate protection
The recent terror attacks that took place in a synagogue in Jerusalem have led me to reflect on my own experience in witnessing Israel’s resilience to terrorism this past summer. Tragically, these innocent people were killed simply for being Jewish.…
The Curious Case of Israeli Guns: the NRA’s Faulty Logic
On early Friday morning, an army of several thousand heavily armed law enforcement officials descended upon the tranquil Boston suburb of Watertown in hopes of capturing the elusive second suspect in the Boston Marathon bombing, Dzhokar Tsarnaev. Tsarnaev is now in…
Free Speech, Social Media, and how we can all stand up to Twitter terror
Social media is quickly becoming the lifeblood of all communication, permanently altering the way people connect. Trendsetting behemoths such as Facebook and Twitter permeate every nook and cranny of our virtual and corporeal lives, saturating every fiber of human interaction…