The Jewish Thinker

Progressive thinkers need to stop sulking and learn how to use Jewish language as a progressive force. Only then will they be able to agitate effectively for change.

I can't justify circumcision with logic, but I'm so socialized to the idea that I'm not really opposed to it.

My Zionist identity came from engaging with Israel’s critics, especially in the arts, not from denying them a voice.

There is nothing neither wrong nor un-American in being a single issue voter.

U.S. policies on Israel are the hot topic for presidential candidates, but by speaking to a minority of Jewish Americans who’ll base their vote solely on that, they’re giving the rest of us a bad name.

Cover songs like 'I'm Jewish and You Know It' and 'Black and Jewish' use anti-Semitic stereotypes to define Jewish identity, rather than presenting the meaningful attributes of being Jewish.

The comment and subsequent apology by Interior Minister Eli Yishai about Israeli soldiers failing in the Second Lebanon War because they did not pray reminded me of a story my dad told us one Shabbat dinner a few years ago. It's a story Yishai would like.

Part of making the transition between an exiled people and a nation state is the realization of control. Jews are no longer are passive in the face of events; we have the ability to change the world around us.

It is time for those who want to be a part of a Jewish community - any Jewish community - to focus on the ties that bind us together as opposed to those that pull us apart.

From #j14 to the Bet Shemesh protests, the Jewish people living in their homeland is not an entity to which things happen, but a people who can affect their own fate.

Israel's theocrats don't want you to know that it's a new year, because that's not kosher.

Amid rumors Dior has finally found a replacement for John Galliano, my mind is plagued by memories of the ridiculous media storm that crushed a pitiful man.

Religious ideologues are using textual interpretations to justify actions that clearly desecrate G-d’s name rather than glorify it. Inspiring educators cannot afford to stand idly by.

Rosenblit reminds me of Rosa Parks, who – together with Clifford Durr, Edgar Nixon and Jackie Robinson – led to the eventual racial desegregation of the United States.

I call on those who reject the sanctity of same-sex relationships to hold a single standard regarding all couples: gay or straight.

A modern Orthodox women who refuses to shake a man's hand does not realize the embarrassment she causes to the other and the indignity she takes upon herself.

As the fissures between sectors of Israeli society grow, I am told there could never be a Jewish civil war. But history provides us with several examples of Jewish infighting.

Social bindings, like the chosen people concept, have been highly effective in cementing Jewish isolationism and, dare I say, arrogance. But the fallacy, and the real anti-Semitism, comes from those who believe that this is in some way unique to Jews when, in fact, everyone does it.

This ad campaign - while having the right intentions - was completely disrespectful and a huge waste of money.

Jews living in the Diaspora have long sought for society to accept that, while its members want to be equal to non-Jews, they will always be distinct.

Over the years, my definition of God has changed, and continually changes.

No matter where you go in the world, Israelis are easily identifiable: they’re rude, impatient and make a lot of noise. Such behavior gives Israel and Jews a bad name. But things don’t have-to stay that way.

‘It wasn’t easy coming from a Jewish background and having to explain to my ruddy-faced English schoolteachers why I wouldn’t sing hymns at the annual Carol service, but I preferred that to condoning the practices of Jewish schools.’

Though it has never been an easier time to be a Jew, it has never been harder to define ourselves as part of a cohesive Jewish people.

I recently went to two weddings – one of an American couple and the second of an Israeli couple. The stark contrast between the two made me wonder why Israeli weddings are so overdone.

While wearing a kippah at the rally commemorating the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, I was questioned intensely and searched more fully. I wanted to scream, 'I’m not one of them, don’t worry!'

While large university campuses provide a plethora of activities to recruit students with diverse Jewish identities, students that attend small colleges or universities miss out on being in involved because they feel they don’t ‘fit the mold.’

Israel is in danger of no longer being governed by the people; this danger does not come from the multitudes surrounding us who seek our destruction, but rather from those who wish for rabbinic fiat and Torah law to rule supreme.

Students who participate in programs in Israel return home impassioned and engaged; the challenge is for Jewish communities abroad to reach these excited, newly captivated students to maintain their level of interest in their Jewish roots and Israel.

It is undeniable that secular and religious Judaism have benefited from the existence of the other, but they can exist independently of each other remains to be seen.

Although the majority of Diaspora Jews live in democratic countries, this is not a practice that the Jewish world has taken on board; we are a society that is governed and represented by those who can afford to lead.

While many have compared the protests that are erupting throughout the United States with the Arab Spring, a more apt comparison would be with the social justice protests that overtook Israel this past summer.

The truth is that Einstein did not formulate the law of the photoelectric effect in the Yeshiva, and Freud did not develop psychoanalysis in the synagogue.

Although it is understandable that kosher food necessitates additional, costly supervision, and kosher businesses seek to maximize process, the exorbitant price of kosher products has reached an inexcusable extreme.

On Yom Kippur, for one special day, unlike anywhere else, silence prevails in Israel’s streets.

Democracy is born from questioning the status quo and is a product of discourse and debate; the process Israel is undergoing is far-reaching and universal, giving promise for a better tomorrow both here – and abroad.

Each year, as we hear the story of the binding of Isaac, we must analyze the sacrifices we have or have not made over the course of the year, allowing us to become the best version of ourselves for the year to come.

We need to challenge the yoke from time to time and luckily, it’s our specialty; it's time to start seeing progress for what it is - something fundamentally human and certainly no sin.

As one of the most successful programs of the Jewish people to date looks forward to its next ten years, it has the tremendous opportunity to redefine the relationship between the younger generation of Israelis and Diaspora Jews.

On the surface, it may seem that widespread acceptance of Judaism is a positive sign; but the use of Jewish cultural and religious icons often comes with a view of Judaism that does not do it justice.

If Jewish environmental principles and spiritual practice are applied only on special trips to the wilderness or to the farm, its impact will remain both physically and spiritually peripheral to everyday life.

Halacha’s veto power provides it with continued relevance in our world- forcing us to accept its challenges along with its benefits.

There should be no distinction made between an immigrant by choice and an immigrant by necessity; Israel is meant to be the homeland of the Jewish people, regardless of what brought them here.

Although having Orthodoxy as the predominant religious affiliation in Israel provides a common Jewish language for most, it limits the options of those who seek a different path.

At what point should the Diaspora communities say to Israelis that enough is enough- we will give, but we will not allow those in your own society to shirk their responsibilities?

The almighty dollar has replaced the Almighty, and freedom, independence and justice has taken a back seat to BMWs, eating at the right restaurants and being seen at the right parties.

We must beware that we do not forget our own religious roots: where we come from can be a vital ingredient in knowing where we are going, and how to get there.