With a worldwide interest in K-Pop, Korean television dramas, and Kimchi, Korean pride is nothing new to Chana Bilek, an Orthodox Jew from South Korea, with equal pride in the cultures she calls her own. “I was born in Korea. When I was just under 2 years old, I was left abandoned in a hotel […]
Earlier this month, the Jewish world mourned the passing of Rabbi Sholom Dovber Lipskar z”l, founder of the Aleph Institute—an organization built on the belief that no Jewish soul should ever feel forgotten, no matter their circumstances. Founded at the direction of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Aleph Institute has spent decades […]
You may have first met Fay Brezel on Jewish Matchmaking, the hit Netflix series where she quietly broke stereotypes by showing up as her full, authentic self: a proud Orthodox Jewish woman deeply rooted in Torah values and passionate about mental health and personal growth. But long before Netflix, Fay was building something even more […]
At the 2nd annual Jewish Media Awards, held at Lincoln Center on November 12, 2024, Netflix’s Jewish Matchmaking was honored with the Keter Shem Tov Award for authentic Jewish representation in global media. Aleeza Ben Shalom, the show’s star matchmaker, accepted the award on behalf of the series. “We got to see Jews from all […]
The little-known Jewish holiday of Lag BaOmer starts tonight and goes through tomorrow. This day of late-spring fun interrupts a period of national mourning for the Jewish people. How did this annual pre-Memorial Day festival come to be? Two thousand years ago, the great Torah sage Rabbi Akiva, who was considered to be the best teacher of […]
Dear Jew in the City, With all the recent media attention on the Vatican and the process of selecting a new pope through a conclave, I was wondering—does Judaism have anything remotely similar? Is there a historical or halachic equivalent to locking leaders in a room until a decision is made? How are major religious […]
