This Shabbat is Parashat Zachor, the maftir that grammarians and Torah readers love to ponder upon. For a discussion of the issues related to this Torah reading and the mistaken custom of some synagogues, see here and here. In today’s installment of his program, באופן מילולי, (“Literally Speaking”) Dr. Avshalom Koor discussed a [...]
Rav Ovadiah Yosef has paskened that if a man dies and doesn’t leave behind any sons, a daughter may say kaddish if there is a minyan that gathers in her home to study Torah or after psalms are read somewhere else. He explicitly forbids a woman to say kaddish in the synagogue. A little opening [...]
While looking for something else, I stumbled across an interview with Dana Kaplan, author of Contemporary American Judaism: Transformation and Renewal. His summary of the book.
I argue that American Jews, like other Americans, have become much more interested in personal spirituality, and this has transformed American Judaism. Until the end of World War II, [...]
INN is reporting that archaeologists have discovered a synagogue dating from the late second temple period in Migdal/Magdala, north of Tiberias. See this press release and these posts. Below are some pictures from the Antiquities Authority.
The article quotes Dina Avshalom-Gorni saying that this is the first time that a menorah decoration has been found [...]
Ynet has published an article (Hebrew) about changes which Rabbi Yuval Sherlow wants to make in the architecture and functioning of the synagogue (Orthodox) in order for it to be more welcoming to women. He isn’t necessarily so liberal when it comes to some things and many of these things have been standard in [...]
See this (Hebrew) interesting post by Rav Tzair on the relationship between how people live their lives and what is written in books.
I recent wrote here about Berry Sakharov and Rea Mochiach’s putting of poetry by Shelomo ibn Gabriol to music. One of the pioneers of such attempts is Meir Banai of the multi-talented Banai family. In 2007 he released an album שמע קולי which features musical renditions of traditional Jewish liturgical compositions. One of [...]
Shmuel Rosner discusses importing the American-style synagogue to Israel with R. Ronen Neuwirth of Tzohar.
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Q: Isn’t the role of the rabbi in the US and Israel completely different? How can you draw on experience from the US and teach Israelis?
A: There is a common misconception among Israelis that the role of the rabbi is [...]
Part V of a series of interviews in Reform Judaism magazine with Lee I. Levine titled “In Search of the Synagogue Part V” is available.
Did women hold leadership positions in the synagogue?
Yes. Synagogue inscriptions from different locales identify women with the titles archisynagogos/archisynagogissa (head of a synagogue), archegissa (leader), presbytera (elder), mater or pateressa (mother), [...]
The dating and ubiquitousness of ancient synagogues is the subject of some controversy, e.g. see here. Donald D. Binder has a nice web site surveying Second Temple Synagogues where you can find much information about numerous synagogues and inscriptions. One of the most interesting finds is the Theodotus inscription.
Theodotus, (son) of Vettenus, priest [...]
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