Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine: Lapid No Guts No Vision

Israel’s Prime Minister and candidate for re-election following the 1 November elections – Yair Lapid – refuses to make any comment on the Saudi Peace Plan published on 8 June calling for the merger of Jordan, Gaza and part of the West Bank into one territorial entity to be called The Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine. Read more

Is circumcision justified?

Read more

On the other hand

At the moment, we are in the midst of an intense heat wave. Read more

Wall to wall Richard Strauss: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing

Before I go into raptures about the sound of the Australian World Orchestra and the remarkable coup to entice virtually-retired Zubin Mehta to conduct it again, I have to question the choice of an all-Richard Strauss program. Read more

Meet Rivka Carmi, former president of Ben-Gurion University

JNF Australia has had a long association with the Negev, and so it is no surprise that one of the guest speakers at next week’s gala events shares that association. Read more

The BBC’s perfectly sealed thought system

After Sir Salman Rushdie was attacked in New York last month by a Muslim intent on fulfilling the murderous 1989 Iranian fatwa against him, the BBC’s Dateline London program ran an interview with the Palestinian commentator Abdel Bari Atwan. Read more

Shake Rattle ‘N’ Roll: a Melbourne theatre review by Alex First

A cavalcade of song, movement and colour, Shake Rattle ‘N’ Roll breathes new life into the sounds of the ‘50s and ’60s with entertainment aplenty. Read more

Keeping Dads in the picture: unpacking masculinity this Father’s Day

In an age of respectful relationships, toxic private school cultures and a post-#MeToo world, it’s the question many parents are asking: how do we raise happy, healthy boys?…ask Cassandra Barrett and Dr Simon Grof. Read more

L’Chaim – to Life: Podcast with Manny Waks

Morry Frenkel speaks with Manny Waks, CEO of VoiCSA (Voice Against Child Sexual Abuse) about the work of this organisation in the areas of advocacy, awareness and enablement. Read more

Running for cover

Pick one of these definitions, and you will have a perfect explanation of current developments. Read more

Celebrate Gorbachev’s failure to save the Soviet Union, not his heroism

Mikhail Gorbachev is being hailed as the man who ended the Cold War, broke up the Soviet empire and freed Soviet Jewry. Read more

The latest Yad Vashem fiasco

When Effi Eitam was tapped in 2020 by then-Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the new chairman of Yad Vashem—to replace Avner Shalev, who had held the position for nearly three decades—all hell broke loose on the left. Read more

Zionism won. So why is it still under attack 125 years after Basel?

The Zionist movement is throwing itself a party. This week marks the 125th anniversary of Theodor Herzl’s convening of the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. Read more

From Australia’s Jewish Past: Henry Emanuel Cohen – the first President of the NSW Arbitration Court

Henry Cohen was born on 1 December 1840 at Port Macquarie NSW, a twin son of Abraham and Sophia Cohen. Read more

Israel’s rational and irrational Iran policies

As news emerged last week that the United States and Iran are on the verge of concluding a new nuclear deal, Israelis were given two very different interpretations of events. Read more

Time is running out to act against Iran

With the United States and its P5+1 partners on the last stretch of their frenzied race to sign a new version of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with Iran, a number of retired Israel Defence Forces generals and current think-tank experts have been taking the opportunity to insist that “a bad deal is better than no deal.” Read more

Why does Jewish law object to women singing in front of men?

Ask the rabbi. Read more

Lucrezia Borgia: an opera review by Alex First

Soaring vocals and a bravura performance by soprano Helena Dix are among the many highlights of Lucrezia Borgia, in which subterfuge and skulduggery abound. Read more

Hashemite Kingdom of Palestine: Gantz – de Gaulle or de Goose?

Two statements made this past week by Israel’s current Defence Minister– Benny Gantz – could see his run for Israel’s next Prime Minister ended after it has just started. Read more

Feintooner

This week’s cartoon: Living and Lying La Dolce Vita. Read more

An end to the delusions about Biden, Iran and Israel?

Like any gambler who is willing to seize on any glimmer of hope that irresponsible betting will be rewarded with an unexpected reversal of fortune, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid was sounding hopeful this week. Read more

‘Basmanny Justice’ and the Jews of Russia

Six months into the war in Ukraine, Russia is being Russia once again. Read more

New Moon

There was a popular Israeli song in the forties that my father loved, and he taught his pupils at Carmel College. Read more

On the other hand

Currently, most countries are facing a bull market where prices are rising, and the cost of living is escalating. Read more

Between the lines

The definition of reading between the lines is “to understand what someone really means or what is really happening in a situation, even though it is not said openly.” Read more

Abbas’s Holocaust distortion represents a dying past

Palestinian Authority chief Mahmoud Abbas’s recent despicable comments on the Holocaust may have seemed like just another example of the diplomatic mud-slinging typical of Middle Eastern politics. Read more

Apoplexy greets Israel’s move against terror NGOs

When Israeli security forces raided the offices of several NGOs in Ramallah last week and closed them down, they lifted a stone to reveal a buzzing nest of Israel’s enemies. Read more

The Choice: A Novel of Love, Faith, and the Talmud – reviewed by Rabbi Jeffrey Cohen

Maggie Anton has introduced us to a number of stories around Jewish life, beginning with her series on Rashi’s Daughters [3 novels] followed by Rav Hisda’s Daughter [2 novels] and one about personal relationships {Fifty Shades of Talmud]. Read more

Where are now and what lies ahead?

With National Child Protection Week (4 – 10 September) fast approaching, conversations about keeping children safe from harm are particularly pertinent. Jewish Care is proud to support this important community event hosted by @Voicsa. Read more

Singling out Jewish businesses in the name of Palestine 

In 1930s Germany, lists of Jewish businesses were made, and ‘good Germans’ were encouraged to boycott them. Read more

« Previous Page — Next Page »