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Let’s talk about ‘foreign meddling’ in Israeli politics

Yes, Israeli left-wing causes get money from abroad. You know who else gets money from abroad – and lots of it?

Portrait of Theodor Herzl in 1898 (via Wikipedia)

Michael Brenner

Herzl to Heritage Minister Eliyahu: Have you actually read my books?

A missive from the father of modern Zionism to the politician who quoted him: I like to keep religion and state separate

Illustrative: A Haredi demonstrator reacts, in front of a policeman during a demonstration against the opening of a parking garage next to Jerusalem's Old City. Oct. 24, 2009 (AP Photo/ Tara Todras-Whitehill, Files)

Zev Chafets

Liberals can’t seduce Haredim with modernity. Haredim can’t seduce liberals with the Talmud. It’s time to stop pretending

Soldiers from the mixed-gender Lions of the Jordan Valley Battalion take part in an exercise in the Tzeelim army base on February 5, 2018. (Judah Ari Gross/Times of Israel/File)

Pamela Laufer-Ukeles

The 4 mothers and their view from Israel

As the worried mother of an IDF combat soldier, I now see the haggadah’s sons in the fight over Israel’s future

Illustrative. Supreme Court justices arrive for a court hearing, at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, on February 24, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90/ File)

Suzie Navot

There’s no ‘compromise’ in the coalition’s play for unlimited power

Slowing the overhaul is a sham. It’s still a hostile takeover of the Supreme Court and its ability to restrain the coalition

The Israeli Supreme Court in Jerusalem, 1953. In the center M. Smora, President of the Supreme Court accompanied by Supreme Court Justices, S. Asaf, I. Olshan, S.Z. Cheshin, S. Agranat and M. Silberg.

The constitutional revolution wasn’t Aharon Barak’s

It was the Knesset, not the court, that made radical change. As for those early-state judges, they were never robots

Leket Israel feeds those in need. (Amir Yakoby, courtesy Leket Israel)

Joseph Gitler

How a solo operation in my driveway became Israel’s National Food Bank

For 20 years, Leket Israel has fed those in need – breaking the cycle of poverty and preventing massive waste. It’s win-win!

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Howard F Jaeckel

Mar 23, 2023, 10:37 PM

Time for a Unity Government

Watching from the US, I’m astonished by the vitriol and extreme views that characterize Israel’s debate over judicial reform. Senior leaders of the opposition say this is the end of democracy. Demonstrators block traffic and reservists threaten not to report...

Mar 23, 2023, 10:15 PM

Let Go and Let God!

Parsha Vayikra opens up with Hashem calling out to Moshe: “Vayikra el Moshe” (Vayikra 1:1). In the word vayikra there is a small letter aleph. This is a unique occurrence because we only find small letters in eight other...

Mar 23, 2023, 10:11 PM

The West must crack down harder on Russia

In recent days, the UN Human Rights Council held an interactive dialogue on the political situation in the Ukraine. In this discussion, Erik Møse, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, said “the conflict continued to...

Sharona Margolin Halickman

Mar 23, 2023, 10:09 PM

Making the meal offerings come alive

A few months ago, I had the honor of being part of a workshop run by Matan and led by Rabbanit Shani Taragin at Meshek 48 in Rosh Tzurim. The goal of the workshop was to make Menachot (meal...

Mar 23, 2023, 9:40 PM

BBC documentary distorts history and colludes in identity theft

A Palestinian family in a scene from The Holy Land and Us

BBC documentary series, The Holy Land and Us: Our Untold Stories, perfectly balanced on-screen time yet perfectly unbalanced content and contributors. Indeed, if you were setting out to produce a documentary that peddled every lie and libel from the Palestinian playbook; that...

Jeffrey Schrager

Mar 23, 2023, 8:46 PM

Why I protest: For all my siblings and friends

Gush Etzion residents protest in hail and rain. (courtesy)

I have been to protests on behalf of only three causes in my life: The forfeiture of the Golan Heights to Syria, the possibility of giving parts of Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount, to the Palestinian government, and the...

Mar 23, 2023, 8:44 PM

Hear, O Israel! Listening in divided times

I have never known Israel as divided as it is today, and that's saying something. In divided times, the first thing that needs to be done, I would contend, is to listen. Both sides need to recognise the humanity...

Michael Feldstein

Mar 23, 2023, 8:11 PM

Antisemitism in My Backyard

During the past few years, there has been a noticeable rise in anti-Semitism in the United States, and the Jewish community has been shocked by several acts of violence in Pittsburgh, Jersey City, Monsey, and Poway. However, as troubling...

Steven Zvi Gleiberman

Mar 23, 2023, 8:00 PM

Should We Calculate Unintended Consequences?

The reason for offering animal sacrifices is an intergenerational subject of debate and curiosity. Rashi finds the phrase "a pleasant aroma for Hashem" complex, implying that Hashem can smell and find animal offerings pleasing. However, Rashi's observations deepen our...

Tania Shalom Michaelian

Mar 23, 2023, 8:00 PM

Birth of Water Innovation in the Start Up Nation

Residents of early Rehovot posing next to the pool at Minkoff Orchards, 1913. Courtesy: Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites.

Zalman Minkoff dreamed of growing oranges in the Land of Israel at the start of the 20th century. Little did he know just how much his method of irrigating his orchards would change the face of agriculture, contribute to...

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