Ahead Of Her Time Review, March 2011 Film Review by Michael Fox, Special To The Observer   Ruth Gruber It was a volatile, uncertain and anxious world in which Ruth Gruber came of age in the late 1920s and early ‘30s. But it was also surprisingly open to exploration for a

Ajami review, March 2011   A scene from Ajami Film Review by Michael Fox, Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer Even by the high standards set by Israeli films in the last few years, Ajami is a knockout. A crackling urban drama shot with unblinking realism and steeped in astringent

Religion, March 2011 By Rabbi Samuel B. Press, Rabbi Emeritus, Beth Abraham Synagogue    As we approach the observance and celebration of Purim, I choose to share selected thoughts on the holiday, ideas which may serve as a catalyst for our own reflections. Rabbi Samuel B. Press The lodestone which

Sinai Scholarship applications, April 2010 By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer The Miami Valley School and the Sinai Scholars program will make five scholarships available for students entering ninth grade for the 2010-11 school year. In addition, the private, nonsectarian college prep school and Sinai have approved adding a

Birthright trips through Partnership, February 2011 Partnership with Israel is offering free spots on a reserved bus for a 10-day Taglit-Birthright Israel trip this summer to qualifying Jews ages 18-26 in the Dayton area. Dayton’s Jewish Federation is one of 15 in the central United States to participate with the

Centennial Family Mission, February 2011 ‘If the goal of the trip was to reconnect with our Jewishness and the state of Israel, it worked.’             Riding camels at a Bedouin camp Photos and Story by Marcia Schonberg Special To The Dayton Jewish Observer The tour

Religion, February 2011 By Rabbi Bernard Barsky, Beth Abraham Synagogue Most days it was Barry the Messiah who greeted me first when I entered the Brooklyn daycare center for those suffering from mental illness. I worked there for a year, 2002-03, as a rabbinic pastoral intern, and Barry had a

Fiddler national tour, February 2011 By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer John Preece as Tevye On Sept. 22, 1964, an improbable musical about Jewish peasants in pre-revolutionary Russia opened at New York’s Imperial Theatre. Almost 50 years since that opening, Fiddler on the Roof remains one of the most

Pulpit exchange, January 2011 If you want to hear Baptist ministers offer a dvar Torah on Shabbat or a rabbi testify to his faith in church, the Omega Baptist/Temple Israel Pulpit Exchange is for you. The exchange — held during Martin Luther King Jr. weekend — has been an annual

Jewish Family Identity Forum By Candace R. Kwiatek, The Dayton Jewish Observer, January 2011 Sinai. Its impact on the course of human experience has never been equaled. For a year, this column has focused on exploring Aseret haDibrot, The Ten Sayings of Jewish tradition known more generally as the Ten