COA’s new special needs program funded by local council

Sydney’s COA’s weekly bus outings are a blessing to those seniors who want to engage with their friends and enjoy a short walk and lunch in company. Read more

A failure at state-building, Hamas sticks to military build-up in Gaza

Tensions between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip remain high, following a period when Gazan terror factions fired large numbers of projectiles at southern Israeli regions, drawing return Israeli airstrikes. Mass arson attacks targeting Israeli farms and villages that were orchestrated by Hamas appear yet to have stopped, and an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire looks uncertain. Read more

The Nationality Law brouhaha: The failing of Jewish national will?

[A] nation is the culmination of a long past of endeavors, sacrifice, and devotion. … The nation is a soul, a spiritual principle. Two things … constitute this soul or spiritual principle. One is the possession in common of a rich legacy of memories; the other is present-day consent, the desire to live together, the will to perpetuate the value of the heritage that one has received. – Ernest Renan, “What is a Nation?” 1882. Read more

Feintooner

This week’s cartoon…immoral clarity. Read more

How does Judaism deal with adultery?

Ask the rabbi?  Rabbi Raymond Apple answers this and other questions. Read more

What do we expect from a Jewish state?

When the sun rose over Israel the day after a new basic law officially designating it as the “nation-state of the Jewish people,” the country was no different than it was the day before…writes Jonathan S. Tobin/JNS. Read more

Aida…spectacular and phenomenal: an opera review by Victor Grynberg

The reader may think this headline refers to the much-anticipated digital set for this new production of Verdi’s great opera by Opera Australia. Read more

On the other hand…

Mourning for the destruction of Jewish independence and the Temples is now behind us. We have proven that we can overcome tragedies. Israel’s breathtaking achievements continue to amaze…reports Michael Kuttner. Read more

Do you know any descendants of Auschwitz inmate Willy Brachmann?

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Nine days to reflect

The nine days between Rosh Chodesh (New Month) of Av and Tisha B’Av, commemorating the destruction of both Temples and subsequent calamities is an ideal opportunity to reflect, remember and draw conclusions…writes Michael Kuttner. Read more

France’s reputation is at stake again over the murder of Sarah Halimi

For the second time in 20 years, France basked in the accomplishment of winning the World Cup with a team whose diverse backgrounds were as much a symbol of national unity as the creative brand of soccer they played. Read more

Knesset makes it official: Israel is a Jewish state

After a heated session that lasted well into the night, the Knesset Plenum passed the controversial “Nationality Bill” into law on Thursday. The bill now holds weight as one of Israel’s “Basic Laws,” the highest level of legal authority, being that Israel has no official constitution…writes Josh Hasten/JNS. Read more

Trump and Putin focus on Syria-Israel, Arab-Jewish conflicts

Defusing the Syria–Israel conflict and resurrecting the primacy of Security Council Resolution 242 in resolving the Arab-Jewish conflict have emerged as positive outcomes from the Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki this week…writes David Singer. Read more

Manny Waks talks with Henry Greener

While Manny Waks was in Melbourne recently, he spoke with Henry Greener about his journey as a victim, and now the globe-trotting advocate for justice in the field of child sex abuse….a video report. Read more

Not everyone fleeing danger is a refugee

I’ve been wondering recently whether I’m simply a hypocrite…writes Evelyn Gordon/JNS. Read more

The myth of Israeli ‘deterrence’

For more than a decade, Israel has inflicted heavy damage on Hamas. It has, however, never really managed to deter it in the real sense of the word—i.e., of breaking its will to continue the fight…writes Martin Sherman/JNS. Read more

Memories of Mandela

I returned to South Africa a week before the 1994 elections — the first time in that country’s troubled history every adult would have the right to vote. Irrespective of race….writes Vic Alhadeff. Read more

Picturesque, to say the least: a music review by Fraser Beath McEwing

Last night’s Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s APT Master Series concert was all about creating dramatic sound pictures, some clearly subtitled, some borrowed form the Russian Orthodox Church and the rest a challenging kaleidoscope from a contemporary American female composer. Read more

The Dead Still Cry Out: The Story of a Combat Cameraman: a book review by Geoffrey Zygier

As a young girl playing in her home in England one day, Helen Lewis opened an old, apparently hidden suitcase. Read more

Welcoming Orbán doesn’t betray Israeli democracy

For those who like neat political theories with straight lines connecting the people they don’t like, the upcoming visit of Hungarian President Viktor Orbán to Israel provides some potent ammunition…writes Jonathan S. Tobin.JNS. Read more

Why Israel wants Trump to get along with Putin

As far as much of the American public is concerned, the timing for U.S. President Donald Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin couldn’t be worse…writes Jonathan S. Tobin/JNS Read more

Can the US and Israel rely on Putin to force Iran out of Syria?

U.S.  President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin just concluded a bilateral summit in Helsinki, Finland, that proved to be one of the most widely anticipated meetings in years—or, at least, since the meeting with North Korea.writes Sean Savage/JNS. Read more

A gift for the Gift of Life

EndreyThe acclaimed director, Moira Blumenthal, has dedicated a performance of The Man in the Attic  to raise awareness about Gift of Life’s life-saving program. Read more

The Perils facing Anglo Jewry

Over 10 years ago, I warned that the passivity of the Anglo-Jewish leadership would likely lead to disastrous political consequences and negatively impact the younger generation, which was being inadequately educated to face its challenges…writes Isi Leibler. Read more

Feintooner

This week’s cartoon: Twin cities, two states, and one protest. Read more

Lessons from Tishah B’Av

Why do Jews blame themselves?…ask the rabbi. Read more

The Irish Senate’s ‘boycott Israel’ debate

Reading the transcript of the debate that took place in the Irish Senate on July 11 before that body voted, by 25-20, to criminalise commercial relations with Jewish communities in the West Bank, I was struck by how the arguments that were traded fell neatly into one of two categories…writes Ben Cohen/JNS. Read more

The weakening of the Israeli ‘right’

In the day-to-day political discourse, the current Netanyahu-led coalition is frequently referred to as the “most right-wing” ever in Israel’s political history…writes Martin Sherman/JNS. Read more

The other hand

The long school vacation has started and summer is well and truly in full swing. Students and their parents may be in holiday mode but the pace of positive achievements shows no sign of slowing down…writes Michael Kuttner. Read more

Thailand – do it every day

This past week the world was captivated, united and amazed by the remarkable rescue of a soccer team and their coach from complex and dangerous circumstances…writes Rabbi Michoel Gourarie. Read more

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