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Dayton Jewish history talk at Temple Beth Or
Temple Beth Or will present The Origins of Dayton’s Jewish Community, a discussion with Marshall Weiss, at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 23. Weiss, editor and publisher of The Dayton Jewish Observer, is the author of Jewish Community of Dayton (Arcadia 2018) and serves as project director of Miami Valley

Temple Israel’s longest serving rabbi, P. Irving Bloom, dies at 88
By Marshall Weiss, The Dayton Jewish Observer Rabbi P. Irving Bloom, who served as senior rabbi of Dayton’s Temple Israel from 1973 until his retirement in 1997, died in Atlanta, Jan. 29 at the age of 88. His 24 years at Temple Israel mark the longest period any rabbi has

Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism
Some readers might question the headline above, which refers to “unprecedented U.S. antisemitism.” Is the level of Jew-hatred in the United States truly unprecedented? In what ways? Right now, the mass murders of Jews because they are Jewish, and the attempted mass murders of Jews because they are Jewish —

Strengthening our Jewish identity: our most potent weapon
By Rabbi Judy Chessin, Temple Beth Or Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism There is no doubt that the steady increase of antisemitic attacks in our nation is frightening. Of course, antisemitism is nothing new for Jews. Those of us in our advanced years remember Nazi Germany’s

Proudly defiant
By Rabbi Nochum Mangel, Director, Chabad of Greater Dayton Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism Sunday evening, Dec. 29 — the last night of Chanukah — after the attack in Monsey, N.Y., when a terrorist with a machete attacked Jews celebrating Chanukah, I lit my own menorah,

Remain authentic, engage with others
By Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz Temple Israel Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism Less than 10 years ago, I heard sociologist Robert Putnam share his findings about the American religious experience from his book, American Grace. He pointed to a notable decline in antisemitism since 1946 and, more

Education is still the best way to combat antisemitism
By Rabbi Haviva Horvitz, Temple Beth Sholom, Middletown Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism On Oct. 1, 2019, Lawrence P. Mulligan, Middletown’s mayor, presented me with a proclamation that recognized Middletown’s support of the state of Israel and declared that day “Stand with Israel Day.” Shortly thereafter,

Learning to shoot and not drown
By Rabbi Cary Kozberg, Temple Sholom, Springfield Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism In the Talmud, Tractate Kiddushin (29a), we learn: “The father is bound in respect of his son to circumcise, redeem (if the son is a firstborn), teach him Torah, marry him off, and teach

It isn’t always antisemitism
By Rabbi Leibel Agar, Beth Jacob Congregation Miami Valley rabbis share thoughts on unprecedented U.S. antisemitism “Times, they are a-changin.” While some of us are not old enough to remember the actual release of that famous Bob Dylan song, I would venture most of us have heard it at one

Acting Jewish
A Bisel Kisel with Masha Kisel, The Dayton Jewish Observer As we begin a new decade, I’m seeing many “best of arts and culture” lists pop up on my social media feed. Paradoxically, in the last 10 years we have witnessed a rise in antisemitism along with a renaissance of