Category Archives: Jews and Judaism

Happy Chanukah!

Posted on December 20, 2011 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

Not much time for posting these days. Too much teaching and grading and dealing with the situation at school which only seems to be getting worse. Right now, it appears as if the administration has used the pretext of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism | 3 Comments

An Edition of the Christian Bible Edited Entirely by Jews

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I confess that I am among those Jews about whom Professors Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler write in the introduction to their recently published The Jewish Annotated New Testament who tend to “believe that any annotated New Testament is … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism, literature | 12 Comments

Joe Paterno, Jerry Sandusky, Foreskin Man, Vulva Girl and the Two-Thirds of My Freshman Composition Class Who Are Failing Right Now

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

You know that feeling when there is so much going on, so much you have to do, so many different threads that you need to keep weaving together, or balls in the air that you can’t let drop, or spinning … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Anti-Semitism, Education, Gender and the Body, Jews and Judaism, Rape, intimate violence, & related issues | 27 Comments

Thoughts from Vilnius: a Ramble

Posted on August 15, 2011 by Julie

For the past three weeks, I’ve been in Vilnius (better known to Ashkenazi Jews as Vilna or Vilne), Lithuania, studying in a month-long Yiddish intensive. Most of the students in the program are in History or Jewish Studies PhD programs; … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism | 31 Comments

Continuing a Discussion about Brit Milah

Posted on July 10, 2011 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

Commenting in the thread about the circumcision ban that has been proposed in San Francisco, Chingona wrote the following: Secondly … and here I’m trying to put into words something that I think is felt on a subconscious and instinctual level … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Gender and the Body, Jews and Judaism | Tagged , | 25 Comments

Circumcision, like everything else, is complicated

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Julie

A couple of weeks ago, Peaceful Parenting reported on some remarks Russell Crowe made about circumcision: Circumcision is barbaric and stupid. Who are you to correct nature? Is it real that GOD requires a donation of foreskin? Babies are perfect…. … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism, Men and masculinity | 35 Comments

Greek Bishop Equates Zionism to 'Satanism' – NYTimes.com

Posted on January 2, 2011 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I am not quite up to typing a full-fledged post yet, though I will be soon. Still, I couldn’t resist posting a link to this piece on The Lede, by Robert Mackey. Greek Bishop Equates Zionism to ‘Satanism’ – NYTimes.com: … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Jews and Judaism | 10 Comments

The Anti-Defamation League Should Be Ashamed of Itself

Posted on August 2, 2010 by Richard Jeffrey Newman

I first read about the ADL’s statement supporting those who would stop the building of Cordoba House, a Muslim community center modeled on the YM/YWHA’s and CA’s you can find all over New York City over at The Debate Link. … Continue reading →

Posted in Islamaphobia, Jews and Judaism, Race, racism and related issues | 62 Comments

Apply for the Jeremiah Fellowship!

Posted on June 20, 2010 by Julie

So I just finished a wonderful leadership program run by the Progressive Jewish Alliance called the Jeremiah Fellowship. The Los Angeles and Bay Area programs are currently accepting applications for next year’s cohorts, and you should apply! Here’s a description … Continue reading →

Posted in Jews and Judaism | Comments Off on Apply for the Jeremiah Fellowship!

Some facts that people with an opinion on Israel need to have.

Posted on June 7, 2010 by Julie

The context (via Feministe). 1. Jews have lived continuously in Palestine, in varying numbers, since before the destruction of the second temple. To say that Jews should “get the hell out of Palestine” implies that the actions of the Israeli … Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Semitism, International issues, Jews and Judaism, Palestine & Israel | 44 Comments