Hurricane Katrina Relief

Donations to help victims of Hurricane Katrina can – and should – be sent to the United Jewish Communities Hurricane Fund or to the American Red Cross.

Rabbi Shalom Gold ‘Confronts’ Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein

Rabbi Shalom Gold has attempted to answer Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein’s open letter (PDF download) to Rabbi Avraham Kahane Shapira concerning Disengagement.
Rabbi Gold’s main point is the circumstances have changed since Rabbi J.B. Soleveitchik (Rabbi Lichtenstein’s father-in-law and teacher, often-quoted in Rabbi Lichtenstein’s letter) ruled land could be ceded for reasons of pekuakh nefesh (to save [...]

Why Sharon Was Right?

Victor Davis Hanson writes on why Sharon was right to leave Gaza.

Christopher Hitchens On Metzitza B’Peh

Christopher Hitchens has written a provacative rant in Slate magazine against metzitza b’peh:
…Where to start with this? I could wish that Bloomberg were always so careful about keeping out of other peoples’ business: He has made it legally impossible to have a cigarette and a cocktail at the same time, anywhere in the city. But [...]

Rabbi Meir Kahane “Vindicated” By National Geographic

Not much to argue with in this article from Arutz 7. Rabbi Kahane’s murder was the first act of jihad on American soil.

The Future Be Told?

   
A prescient Pini Dunner six months ago wrote in the Jerusalem Post:
…Over recent months a new group has emerged that seems to uncannily echo the stance adopted by Natorei Karta. Its adherents use religiously charged language to besmirch the democratically elected government of Israel. They seem to have no respect for the rule of [...]

New Orleans Hurricane Reading

New Orleans and the surrounding Gulf Coast will be in in the news for the next several weeks in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The best two books to get a flavor of what New Orleans’ unique lifestyle is like are both novels. One is Patty Ann Friedmann’s Second Hand Smoke; the other, John Kennedy [...]

Chabad Boxer Wins NABA Championship

Chabad boxer Dmitry "Star of David" Salita has won the North American Boxing Association junior welterweight title. While this isn’t the WBA or the WBC, it’s still impressive. Salita is the first Jewish champion in any division or association in 27 years. His manager is a Chabadnik who carries a Tanya during each fight. Salita [...]

Rabbi Moshe Tendler: Metzitza B’Peh Violates Jewish Law

Ultra-Orthodox rabbis meet with NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg regarding ritual circumcision, August 11, 2005. (Photo credit: Edward Reed)
Today’s New York Times reports on the controversy over oral suction (metzitza b’peh) done during some ritual circumcisions. The money quote:
… Rabbi Moshe Tendler, a microbiologist and professor of Talmud and medical ethics at Yeshiva University, said that [...]

Chabad Rabbi Plans “Yad Vashem” For Gush Katif

Jewish-owned building in Gaza. Sign on roof: "Sharon is a Kopo" [sic].
The Jerusalem Post reports:
In a controversial move, a Chabad rabbi who vehemently opposed Israel’s pullout from the Gaza Strip is planning to establish a memorial center commemorating the destruction of the Gaza settlements, where photographs of soldiers and police who took part in the [...]

Settler Who Set Herself On Fire Dies Of Injuries

Ha’aretz reports:
Yelena Bosinova, 54, a right-wing activists from the West Bank settlement of Kedumim died Friday of her wounds a week after she set herself on fire in protest against the disengagement.
Police said Bosinova held a solitary protest in the Negev town of Netivot. She was holding a sign condemning the evacuation of Gush Katif, [...]

Moslems To Guard Mosques After Right Wing Jews Throw Pig Head Into Mosque

Ha’aretz is reporting that Israel’s Moslem community is setting up its own guard units after two right wing Jews threw a pig’s head into a mosque in Jaffa. The pig’s head was inscribed with the words "The Prophet Mohammed."

Satmar Threatens NYC Mayor Over Circumcision Controversy – Mohel Still Refusing To Cooperate With NYC Health Officials

The Forward’s Steven I. Weiss reports:
The controversy over a disputed circumcision ritual could affect the mayor’s race in New York City, as some members of the Hasidic community are promising to protest any restrictions placed on the mohel in question.
Rabbi Yitzchok Fischer has been the subject of an investigation by the city’s health department since [...]

Chabad Deception Over Gaza In Montreal

The Canadian Jewish News reports:
An Orthodox rabbi who is well-known for his right-wing views on Israel severely criticized the organizers of a highly publicized outdoor rally last week against the disengagement from Gaza and the northern West Bank for being hypocritical and misleading.
Rabbi Reuben Poupko told The CJN that members of the Lubavitch community, who [...]