Join our Community
Support ToI and remove all ads
Learn more

ISRAEL AT WAR - DAY 533

Alix Wall

Holocaust survivor Ben Stern (blue shirt) leads 200 marchers in the "Bay Area Rally Against Hate" in Berkeley in August 2017. (Photo/Rob Gloster)
March 6, 2024, 1:16 pm
Ben Stern, Holocaust survivor who stood up to neo-Nazis, dies at 102
Stern worked to prevent National Socialist Party of America from marching through Skokie, Illinois, in 1977 and then opposed white supremacists in California in 2017
By Alix Wall
In Edinburgh, the couple found a welcoming Jewish community, where, Jennifer Andreacchi and Han Smith (left) said, many of the younger community members are queer. (Fern Photography/ via JTA)
January 31, 2023, 3:12 am
This young American couple had Scotland’s first-ever queer Jewish wedding
After meeting as teens in the spring of 2015, Han Smith and Jennifer Andreacchi eventually fell in love — with each other and Judaism — and converted together ahead of the huppah
By Alix Wall
Deborah Newbrun. (Margot Yecies via JTA)
November 22, 2022, 2:16 am
Jewish marriage rites are robust; now a rabbi is making rituals for Jews who divorce
Remembering what was lacking when she divorced, Deborah Newbrun adapts existing practices to help people with healing and closure
By Alix Wall
Alex Zeldin and Tamar Caplan are lifted on chairs during their wedding reception, August 21, 2022. (JC Lemon Photography/ via JTA)
October 17, 2022, 8:50 am
When the Torah cycle ended, their Russian-American romance began
After reconnecting at a Simchat Torah event, Tamar Caplan and Alex Zeldin find chemistry — and matching Jewish ideals — and level up from friendship to lifelong love
By Alix Wall
The bride and groom, Ophir Haberer and Adi Aboody, exit the chuppah after the ceremony with family and friends applauding, June 4, 2022. (Luna Munn Photography)
August 16, 2022, 1:39 am
In California, a wilderness-inspired wedding celebration marries nature with Judaism
Adi Aboody and Ophir Haberer, who met through Wilderness Torah, a group of earth-focused Jews, mark their nuptials with an animal-skin ketubah and ‘first fruits’ altar
By Alix Wall
Nether Rabbi Amy Wallk nor Rabbi Mark Cohn had been looking for a relationship when they first met at the Shalom Hartman Institute in 2017. (Tamar Katz/ via JTA)
June 23, 2022, 3:09 am
Two rabbis, from two different denominations, get a second chance at love
After twice meeting at rabbinical seminars on opposite sides of the ocean, Amy Wallk and Mark Cohn realized that leading 2 congregations 700 miles apart couldn’t stop their romance
By Alix Wall
Ben and Julie Schreiber were married October 10, 2021, in Kirkland, Washington, under a huppah whose design incorporated blessings from their friends and wedding guests. (JennyGG Photography/ via JTA)
January 14, 2022, 10:44 pm
In a creative COVID union, wedding guests helped craft the huppah and ketubah
Wanting to be surrounded by loved ones but aware some may not feel safe attending, Julie Plaut Warwick and Ben Schreiber literally construct their canopy out of mailed-in blessings
By Alix Wall
Rabbis Becca Walker (left) and Ariella Rosen became the first same-sex rabbinical couple to be married in the Conservative movement. (Kelly Prizel Photography via JTA)
November 6, 2021, 9:30 am
In 1st for Conservative movement, women rabbis tie knot in same-sex wedding
‘It feels like we shouldn’t be groundbreaking,’ Rabbi Becca Walker says after marrying Rabbi Ariella Rosen in wedding officiated by another lesbian rabbi
By Alix Wall
Jon Grobman (center) poses with a group of incarcerated men at California State Prison, Los Angeles County, in Lancaster. His own prison term behind him, Grobman now works as director of programs for Paws for Life K9 Rescue, which has incarcerated men train shelter dogs. (Courtesy of Rita Earl Blackwell, via JTA)
September 6, 2021, 5:09 am
A rabbi and rescue dogs helped this US prison lifer find freedom and redemption
Jon Grobman was given a life sentence without parole, but after dedicating himself to helping fellow inmates through a canine training program, he’s been granted an early release
By Alix Wall
Isaac Yosef opened the kosher Frena Bakery and Cafe in 2016. (Courtesy of Yosef/ via JTA)
May 30, 2021, 3:01 am
In San Francisco, Israeli bakery makes waves hiring formerly incarcerated staff
When Isaac Yosef took a chance on an ex-con who’d learned Hebrew to bolster his Bible study, he opened the door for others people were reluctant to hire — and who are now thriving
By Alix Wall
James “Sneaky” White Jr., moments after his release from prison, Jan. 21, 2020. (Alix Wall via JTA)
January 25, 2020, 6:12 am
After 38 years, Jewish convict who helped 1,500 inmates earn degrees is released
James A. ‘Sneaky’ White Jr., sentenced to life for a 1980 murder, did charity work, initiated education program; is welcomed by Jewish community as he leaves on parole
By Alix Wall
Camp Tawonga, a Jewish summer camp in Northern California. (Courtesy of Camp Tawonga)
January 26, 2019, 4:24 am
California Jewish camp to try out all-gender cabins this summer
Citing ‘commitment to social justice and inclusion,’ Camp Tawonga says pilot program a response to increasing number of non-binary kids and staff
By Alix Wall
Efi Asaf, left, and Rachel Brown cooking matzah balls at a Mevashlim B’Ivrit class in Boise, Idaho. (Courtesy of Asaf/via JTA)
July 2, 2018, 5:32 am
Home cooking classes where Israel and Jewish culture are always on the menu
Traditional recipes with a dollop of diplomacy are on the menu as volunteers bring Jews and non-Jews together each month in global workshops
By Alix Wall
At 76, longtime activists Shoshana Dembitz, seated, center left, and Abigail Grafton, seated, center right, married in El Cerrito, Calif., on June 27. The ceremony was officiated by Rabbi Diane Elliot, seated left, and her husband, Rabbi Burt Jacobson. (Lea Delson via JTA)
July 8, 2016, 11:40 pm
Wedding of lesbian firebrands, both 76, is a celebration of Jewish and ‘Aquarian’ traditions
After 18 years together, Shoshana Dembitz and Abigail Grafton are enjoying their right to make their relationship official
By Alix Wall
Phil Lesh lights the candles as Jeannette Ferber, a cantorial soloist at Berkeley’s Renewal congregation Chochmat HaLev, sings the blessing, and guitarist Ross James looks on, at a Passover seder, April 2016. (© Bob Minkin Photography / www.minkinphotography.com via JTA)
April 28, 2016, 11:35 pm
Rock legend Phil Lesh gathers musician friends for a Grateful Dead Passover
Fans of the iconic psychedelic band celebrate the Jewish holiday at Terrapin Crossroads, the bassist’s Marin County club
By Alix Wall
Load More
Sign in or Register
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.
Never miss breaking news on Israel
Get notifications to stay updated
You're subscribed
image
Register for free
and continue reading
Registering also lets you comment on articles and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.
Please use the following structure: example@domain.com
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
I forgot my password / Send me a sign in link
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.