I grew up in an anti-zionist Hasidic community in NYC. I studied in an anti-Zionist cheder (boys school) and yeshiva until I got married at the age of 20. Fast forward to today, I still live and raise my family in a predominantly anti-Zionist Hasidic community. Like in all other Jewish communities, our community has many […]
I grew up in a Hasidic home in the Har Nof neighborhood of Jerusalem and studied in Hasidic yeshivas until I got married. Because soldiers are considered heroes in Israel, most Israeli children, even haredim, dream of joining the IDF. I never believed that my dream would come true, though, until the day I met a Hasidic […]
Israel’s Ultra-Orthodox Parties Embrace Technology and Emerge Stronger The ultra-Orthodox parties made efforts during the campaign to appeal to younger Jews. United Torah Judaism created a Facebook page; Shas did the same with a Telegram account. Octogenarian and nonagenarian sages helped, traveling around the country by minibus and helicopter to attend mass rallies. A Hilarious, […]
Two-thirds of the world either doesn’t know that the Holocaust happened—or they deny that it did. The Jewish community has invested tremendous resources to spread awareness and education about the Holocaust, in order to prevent another one, but it doesn’t seem to be working. Additionally, 41% of Americans don’t know what Auschwitz is and 56% of Austrians don’t […]
Dear JITC- What did Rabbi Akiva’s students do wrong? Whatever they did, isn’t killing 24,000 of them a bit much? Thanks, Daria Dear Daria- Thanks for your question. Allow me to flesh it out a bit for the benefit of those who may not have the necessary frame of reference. The sefirah period, which lasts […]
A Boxing Promoter’s Trickiest Move Is Observing the Sabbath Dmitriy Salita, a 37-year-old former welterweight, is the rare Orthodox Jew in big-time boxing and, as such, he observes the Sabbath. From sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, he adheres to the faith’s prohibitions on phones, television or internet, and perhaps most difficult for his line of […]
