Disclaimer: This is a review of a slasher/horror movie, full of gore, blood, violence, gratuitous nakedness, and levels of swearing even those of us who are sailors would blush at. TL;DR for the love of all that is holy (and your sanity) do not watch this movie. This review is as PG as possible, written […]
What do Snow White’s dwarfs have to do with Hannukah? About as much as garden gnomes have to do with the technically insignificant but widely celebrated Festival of Lights. Which is to say, not much. But given what continues to be sold as Hannukah merch year after year, who even cares anymore. So let’s celebrate […]
Andrew Luger, a Jewish former U.S. attorney for Minnesota, has been nominated to take the role again by President Joe Biden. He now waits for the Senate’s approval. Luger previously was the state’s U.S. attorney, or local prosecutor for the federal Department of Justice, from 2014-2017. He is known for a number of high-profile cases […]
In the weeks after George Floyd was murdered by now-former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a reckoning with police violence and systemic racism played out across America, including for American Jews. Twin Cities rabbis and cantors participated in interfaith marches to George Floyd square. The Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the national umbrella organization for […]
Earlier this year, Minnesota Jews felt relief as more than 20 school districts changed their Sept. 7 start dates to avoid conflicting with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. To many, it was a welcome sign of the Jewish community being heard and respected after decades of being sidelined by a majority-Christian environment. But one […]
September 23, 2021 I scanned my weather app. A week of nearly perfect September weather lay ahead. I spotted one night that predicted temperatures in the fifties. SOLD! With an earlier than usual Sukkot holiday, I had decided to renew an old, and long abandoned, family tradition of sleeping one night in our sukkah. When […]
St. Paul police and the FBI are investigating the desecration of a Jewish cemetery near the border of St. Paul and Maplewood, where 32 headstones were knocked down some time between Wednesday evening and Thursday morning. Ken Otto, chairman of the Chesed Shel Emes cemetery, said that there was no damage to any of the […]
A number of synagogues and Jewish agencies have released statements standing in solidarity with Beth El synagogue after a “specific threat of violence” was directed against the St. Louis Park shul. Danya Kornblum, COO of the JCC, wrote to all JCC members: “As you may be aware, Beth El Synagogue in St Louis Park is […]
In 2013, the Pew study “A Portrait of Jewish Americans” shocked Jewish communal leaders and prompted a mad dash to rework institutional priorities and engage more Jews. The study showed a community with record rates of intermarriage, rapid denominational disaffiliation, and a growing rejection of Judaism as a religion. Now, the Pew Research Center is […]
Nowadays, the easiest ways to read up on ideas circulating in the Jewish zeitgeist are to skim tweets; skim catchy headlines on op-eds; or occasionally skim the op-eds themselves. But that experience isn’t necessarily fulfilling or educational. There’s only so much that can be said in 280 characters or in a 1,000 word limit, and […]
