Saluting Hitler in Tosca

Imagine being Jewish and having to give the Nazi salute in front of hundreds of people. This is the discomfiting challenge faced by Sitiveni Talei in Opera Australia’s 2014 production of Tosca. Read more

Labor’s emergency plans for Victorian schools

The Victorian State Labor party will provide $600,000 to help schools develop and implement their Emergency Management Plans to be prepared for incidents resulting from racial or religious intolerance. Read more

Russian speaking Limmud Australia bound

An American Jewish astronaut who learned to speak Russian while training with cosmonauts walks into a lecture hall filled with Russian-American Jews. No, it’s not a priest-and-rabbi-style joke, but a real-life event that exemplifies the spirit of the Limmud FSU (former Soviet Union) educational conferences. Read more

Schools join forces

Two Melbourne Jewish schools have joined forces to consolidate numbers for VCE courses attracting low numbers of candidates. Read more

JIFF – Up and Rolling

The Jewish International Film Festival has opened its 2014 event in Sydney marking 25 years of bringing Jewish movies to screens in Australia and New Zealand. Read more

A medal and a torch

Perth’s David Urban has scored a gold medal at the tenth Special Olympics Australian National Games held recently in Melbourne. Read more

New housing community for Melbourne

Jewish Care Victoria has announced the submission of an application for a town planning permit to the City of Port Philip, for the $12.5 million development of a major community housing project in East St Kilda. Read more

Soccer tragics kick a goal against epilepsy

A slew of soccer stars, ex-Socceroos and other football legends will join forces with communal identities in a unique celebrity ‘fun-raiser’ to aid Epilepsy Action Australia. It’s the Sydney Celebrity Football Charity Challenge. Read more

The Courage to Teach Right From Wrong…writes Rabbi Laibl Wolf

Teaching ethics to kindergarten children? Sounds like a progressive school, sophisticated, forward thinking. Read more

Truce does not equal peace…writes Michael Kuttner

One of the problems we face these days is the inability to recognise reality even when it smacks us in the face. Read more

Alhadeff resigns from CRC

CEO of  The New South Wales Jewish Board of Deputies Vic Alhadeff has resigned from his position as Chair of the NSW Community Relations Commission.

Read more

A minyan on your iPhone or android

 The Minyan Now iOS app and Minyan Now Android app allow Jewish people to create a minyan of 10 males over the age of Bar Mitzvah. Read more

Tzedek welcomes Maccabi statement

J-Wire has published Maccabi Australia’s updated policy on protecting children in their care from sexual abuse…Tzedek has welcomed the new strategy. Read more

Queen’s birthday awards – Jewish recipients

A Canberra professor has received an AM exactly 20 years after his late father received the same honour…a woman becomes the 4th member of her family to receive an award…a medical researcher now resident in London is behind the lab work that went in to creating drugs which generate annual sales of over US$25 billion…a mental health expert expresses concern on the plight of those suffering from mental illnesses.  We identified 26 honourees:  Melbourne 11, Sydney 8, Canberra 2, Perth 2, Brisbane 1, NSW Country 1 and the UK 1.

Read all about it!

Read more

Melbourne’s B’nai B’rith Menorah Awards 2014

The Annual B’nai B’rith Menorah Awards now in the 37^th year, recognise volunteers who work quietly behind the scenes, giving many decades of service to the community. Read more

Anzac Day in Israel

250 young Australians have participated in a two day program with the Jewish National Fund in Israel commemorating Anzac Day 2014. Read more

No worries mate!…declares Michael Kuttner

A short two week visit to Melbourne to attend a family Simcha provided me with the opportunity to meet locals, observe life in part of the “lucky country” and make some observations. Read more

Holy Switch!

Two young women, one a traditional Muslim, the other from an observant reform Jewish background,  have “traded places” for the ABC documentary series “Holy Switch”, and share glowing reports of the experience. Read more

Pyne Signs

Liberal MP Christopher Pyne, a longstanding friend of Israel and the Jewish community, has signed the London Agreement. Read more

Working with Muslims a laughing matter? Maybe….

An Australian Jewish community will hold a comedy debate with its Muslim counterpart. Read more

Koved zayer ondenk – Lest We Forget in Yiddish

Parliamentary Secretary for the Arts Michael Danby visited Germany for ANZAC day and to attend a ceremony at which indigenous remains were returned to Aboriginal leaders. Read more

The Gift of Life

A Sydney-based lawyer whose life had been doomed through an aggressive case of leukemia will shortly meet the American whose stem cells were a perfect match…granting him the Gift of Life. Read more

A special art exhibition

Melbourne’s Jewish Care has launched an exhibition of artwork by adults living with a mental health condition to raise awareness and support participants in their journey to recovery. Read more

Former IDF Chief: Keep Israel’s democracy, religion balanced

“The greatest threat to Israel’s military survival isn’t Iran or the Palestinians – no, it’s Israel’s own internal identity struggle” said Major General (Res.) Elazar Stern. Read more

PJ Library in NSW

A ground-breaking initiative, based on a scheme devised by Country and Western singer Dolly Parton, will enhance Jewish identity for 650 families in NSW and the ACT who have children between 6 months and six years. Read more

Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence talks to SBS on Mary McKillop

This weekend, Mary McKillop will be canonised a saint by the Vatican. Rabbi Jeremy Lawrence of Sydney’s Great Synagogue spoke on the subect on SBS radio. Listen to it here Read more

Lyndhurst cemetery upgraded

Visitors to Melbourne’s Lyndhurst Cemetery can now expect a professional and religiously suitable service from the recently converted green-fields site. Read more

Liberal Senator calls for Gilad Shalit’s release

Liberal Victorian Senator Mitch Fifield told Parliament last week that captive IDF soldier Gilad Shalit should be released immediately. Read more

Jews in the Lucky Country – Isi Leibler visits Australia

I returned with my wife Naomi on the eve of Rosh Hashana from a brief visit to Australia, frequently referred to as Down Under, being the most geographically distant destination from Europe (and Israel). Read more

Exclusive youth service at Chabad

Sydney’s Young Adult Chabad will hold free Jewish New Year Services exclusively for the younger members of the community…believed to be a first-ever. Read more

« Previous Page — Next Page »