Free Republic

A Small But Growing Number of Jews Are Questioning The Ancient Ritual of Circumcision By Michelle Boorstein December 28 When his pregnant wife first challenged circumcising their son, Mike Wallach had a gut reaction: “That’s what we do: We’re Jews!” But doubts about whether the surgery was medically necessary and concern over his wife’s opposition forced Wallach to confront some questions. Can you be Jewish without Judaism’s oldest ritual? he says he asked himself. What does it mean to be Jewish? Adults attending conversion classes at Sixth and I synagogue learn about the traditions behind the ancient Jewish practice of...

I get asked by readers all the time: how can you go from left to right at such a rapid fire pace? Were you a conservative all along? Are you just yanking our chain; you're really still a liberal in conservative clothing? Great question. This is a topic I ponder daily. Now that I look back, I had the seeds of both a conservative and a liberal in me all along. On the liberal side: I was raised a secular Jew, and, for some God forsaken reason, most of us are Democrats. My upbringing lacked meaning and substance, which propelled...

Within the Jewish community, Jews for Jesus is viewed as just cause for a headache. But is it possible that the group’s actual effect renders the cause harmless?One thing most Jews seem able to agree on is that Messianic and other Jesus-believing Jews make us uncomfortable—which might be the understatement of the year. a Because I wrote a book titled Why the Jews Rejected Jesus (Doubleday), I have received many e-mails from Jewish Christians wanting to argue with me or just share their own experiences. More than a few complain of having been yelled at, ostracized, even spat on by...

Dec. 14, 2004 22:43 | Updated Dec. 15, 2004 19:49 Saturday's slippery slope By WENDY BLUMFIELD As the controversy resurfaces about Shabbat shopping, opinions are divided. Do Israelis have the right to spend their one day of leisure as they wish? It is not simply a divide between Orthodox and secular. While the Orthodox do not want their neighborhoods disturbed by commercial traffic on Shabbat – as will happen if the status quo changes in Haifa and the Grand Canyon mall stays open seven days a week – not all secular people want to see Shabbat degenerate into yet another...

DECEMBER 13, 2002 | current issue | back issues | subscribe | Israel Sees A 'Crisis' in Falling U.S. Population Agency Cites Shelved Study 150 Jews Vanish Daily?By NACHA CATTANFORWARD STAFFStepping into a statistical minefield, the Jewish Agency for Israel is defending its decision earlier this month to mount an "international emergency conference" on world Jewish population decline — using as evidence a survey that has been shelved by its own sponsors.The conference, organized in Jerusalem by the Jewish Agency's new strategic planning institute, was focused on what agency officials called a worldwide Jewish "demographic crisis." Speakers referred repeatedly...