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April 2012, 12. Jahrgang, Ausgabe 4 Ausgabe: Nr. 4 » April 2, 2012

Deeply Rooted Differences

Von Rabbiner Mordechai Piron, April 2, 2012
The concept of marriage and the family is deeply rooted in Judaism. Its metaphysical importance is a major difference in comparison to other cultures. Founding of a family is therefore seen as a contribution to completing creation.
A fundamental, decisive difference exists between the Jewish worldview and those of other cultures and religions regarding concepts and views about the institution of marriage and the family. The different outlooks and attitudes are not just limited to the sociological level but are also deeply... more...

Does the Family Have a Future?

April 2, 2012
Constantly present yet rarely viewed as an institution beyond the scope of everyday worries, the family is essential for societies and individual human beings. The Pesach Festival gives us an opportunity to examine the state of families between myth and reality in more detail. At the beginning of... more...

Hanukkah Menorah and Christmas Tree

Von Andreas Schneitter, April 2, 2012
About half of all Jews in the diaspora marry a non-Jewish partner. The fact that this will have consequences for the future of Judaism is hardly disputed – but there is no agreement as to the verdict.
When Marc and Chelsea walked down the aisle at their wedding in August 2010, the groom wore a kippah and a prayer shawl; the bride wore a white, strapless dress. The bridal couple was married under a chuppah followed by the singing of the Lord’s Prayer and gospel songs. A Christian priest and... more...

More Than Just a Yiddish Mama

Von Nicole Dreyfus, April 2, 2012
The stereotype of the Jewish mother arose through the distorted American image of Jewish motherliness. Yet, its history extends far beyond the USA.
The old Jewish proverb that “God could not be everywhere, so He created mothers” indicates the high level of esteem that the Jewish woman and mother has traditionally experienced. However, her idealized image is crassly contradicted by the contemporary clichés about her. The... more...

We Should Found A School For Matchmakers

Von Rachel Stern, April 2, 2012
In 1980, when she began to explicitly discuss sex on the radio and on television, Ruth Westheimer broke a taboo. Today, the sociologist and psychologist is an associate professor at New York University, a member of the Calhoun College in Yale, Butler College in Princeton as well as of the New York Academy of Medicine.
From 2005 – 2010, she and Rabbi Barry Dov Katz from Riverdale hosted a seminar at the Princeton University about the Jewish family within the Bible. Ruth Westheimer runs a private practice in New York and gives lectures around the world. She authored 35 books and has her own website... more...

The Challenge of Freedom

Von Monica Strauss, April 2, 2012
The path into a new life confronted a Latvian-Jewish family with more than just the expectations of Zionist organizations. Novelist David Bezmozgis also shows how heavy the past weighs on emigrants from the Soviet Union.
The Canadian author David Bezmozgis’ first novel The Free World takes place in Rome of 1978. This book received much attention in the USA last year and was also recently published in German. Rome had become the stopover for Soviet Jews on their way to North America in the late 1970s. These... more...

Family Festival of Passover

Von Yves Kugelmann, April 2, 2012
The Time of Times: Only those who have experienced the lack of freedom understand freedom. This primacy is irreversible. Thinking about freedom is just as much a part of Jewish history as the lack of freedom itself. Ranging from Isaiah Berlin to Hannah Arendt, Emmanuel Lévinas, or Nelly Sachs... more...

Undiminished Sense of Family

Von Gisela Dachs, April 2, 2012
The desire to have large families remains constant in Israel. This need is present across all regions and also deeply rooted in secular families. Religious, political, historical, and social factors play a role.
Naked light bulbs, hanging low over marble tables, are all the rage in the restaurants of the Ramat Hachayal high-tech neighborhood. This where Chagit Rotshtein – in her early 40s and employed as legal counsel at a large holding company – likes to go for lunch and thinks with longing... more...
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