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Dispatches from the network and updates from the Foundation.
Rockets were falling in Israel. Missiles were landing in Gaza. It was the fall of 2012, and I was Skyping with my Israeli friend Rivki. “Was the country rallying behind Netanyahu or frustrated by his actions?” I asked. Rivki answered, “Yes, everyone is behind him, total support. The left is furious because he attacked Gaza and the right is irate that he isn’t sending in troops.” I was not privy
Dec 2013
Dr. Tina Seelig, from the Stanford Design School, taught Wexner Heritage and Graduate Fellowship Alumni about creativity at the San Francisco Regional Networking Day. At the open space brain storm session during the San Francisco alumni gathering, I led a spontaneous discussion for whomever wanted to come talk. 20 alumni were encouraged to come up to an open mike and declare to the packed house what issue most impassioned them.
I recently fielded an inquiry from a reporter at a Jewish newspaper asking if I knew how many Israel Studies centers and programs there are in the entire United States. While there is no official catalogue, the answer by my count is seventeen, which is in some ways impressive and in others disappointing. When I was an undergraduate at Brandeis a decade and a half ago, this university known for
Participants of the Israel Alumni Beth Midrash: Meron HaCohen (Class 10), Tsvia Efrati (Class 2), Shmuel and Hagit Porat (Class 10), Yaron Charka (spouse Class 22), Kobi Goldberg (Class 23), Yitzhak Avigad (Class 6) and (not pictured) Deb Housen-Couriel (Class 12) Alumni of the Wexner Israel Fellowship launched a Beit Midrash. We gathered at the Foundation’s office in Jerusalem and even a non-objective observer could note two signs of how successful
Rabbi Elie Kaunfer is planning a free conference call/text study for any and all interested Wexner alumni on Wednesday, December 11th, 2013, 8:30-9:30pm EST. We are trying a new model of after hours text study. If this call is well received, we will likely continue to offer similar sessions. Since many of us have trouble with the metaphor of God as king, common in the liturgy, I thought we would
Some days it feels like modern orthodoxy is disappearing, like the contours that once defined a vision for a compassionate and worldly traditional Jewish life are fading into a mass of religious extremism. Or perhaps it’s just been a bad month. A few weeks ago, a group of Orthodox rabbis, including many who have been identified with modern Orthodoxy for most of their careers, came out with a scathing public
Nov 2013
First year rabbinical student and Wexner Graduate Fellow Juliana Schnur (Class 26), overhears the quip, “No one in the history of the world ever washed a rented car,” and writes this open letter to her peers. And to the “elders” she exhorts: “confront the growing multiculturalism of our community: from intermarried couples to friendship networks across faiths and cultures, to children raised in mixed religious (or non-religious!) households.” With thanks
Nov 2013
The Thanksgivukkah train is about to arrive. By now, you do or do not have your Menurkey and you either love or absolutely hate this great American “mash-up”. And if there is more to be said, let it be about making these days meaningful for all who experience them, rather than the fabulous coincidence of this occurrence this once in 70,000+ years. Despite the 20th century debates within American Orthodoxy
Nov 2013
Naomi Benatar from the Wexner Service Corps blogs about what it feels like to “do something for someone who isn’t you.” Some of her takeaways from last Sunday afternoon: be thankful for what you have; you can change the world; get to it. Click here to read more on Naomi’s blog. Naomi Benatar is a senior at Upper Arlington High School who takes classes at The Ohio State University. In
“In my youth, I developed a habit of dating shiksas—and then I married one last year. I can understand why some people question my commitment to Judaism. However, my intimacy with non-Jews has led me to start wondering whether my pristine brethren (with Jewish spouses) are quite as Jewish as they think…” Current Wexner Heritage Member, Jeremy Derfner (Seattle 12), shared his own candid thoughts on the Pew Study on jewishstudies.washington.edu,