Our leaders have failed us, again. And I don’t know about you, but as a religious person, I’m angry. Approximately 90 percent of the American people believe that their fellow Americans should undergo a background check before they are permitted to purchase a gun. But the legislation mandating those background checks has been blocked in the Senate. A total of 46 Senators could think of no reason why they should listen to a mere 90 percent of the American people. They could think of no good reason to heed those grieving parents whose children were slaughtered in Newtown or to pay attention to...

Hardly a month goes by when we don’t read about the decline or collapse of organized religion in America. But religion — including the organized sort — remains vital and vibrant, defying the predictions of doom that appear with numbing regularity. The latest round of these discussions follows the publication of two studies showing that 20 percent of Americans claim no religious affiliation when asked to state their religious preference. The number of “nones” has doubled in the last two decades. Writing in The Huffington Post on March 20, Professor Gary Laderman of Emory...

My first reaction to the ugly confrontation at the Western Wall on Friday was to be appalled and sickened. Attacks carried out mostly by ultra-Orthodox men, who heckled, shouted, and threw things at approximately 100 members of Women of the Wall attempting to pray at Judaism’s most sacred site, were a chillul Hashem – a desecration of God’s name. But on reflection, I’ve changed my mind: I welcome the war that the ultra-Orthodox have chosen to launch. As offensive as these actions were, there are multiple reasons to expect that good might emerge from the nastiness of recent days. First, the...

More times than I can count, I have asked Israeli politicians about the absence of religious freedom in Israel, and I have heard them respond with obfuscations, evasions, and excuses. When I made the case that religious freedom in Israel is a deep concern not only to Israelis but to the entire Jewish people, the politicians would generally smile indulgently, offer a modicum of sympathy, and change the subject. And then, all of a sudden, came Yair Lapid’s electrifying words in the Knesset last week. (A video with translation is available below.) “I do not observe Shabbat,” Lapid said to Haredi...

The recent decisions by a synagogue in Great Neck and another outside of  Toronto to cancel appearances by anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller — both were rescheduled at other venues—have made headlines in the Jewish press and raised interesting questions for the Jewish community. There are important issues at stake here. They are not new, but they are not going away. So let’s think through, yet again, who it is that we want speaking at our synagogues—and Federations and JCCs. My first observation: Diversity of views should be welcome. Debate should be promoted and controversy encouraged. A...

The Jewish world does not need a “Jewish Nobel Prize.” In fact, it does not need another Jewish award of any kind. As reported in the Forward by Josh Nathan-Kazis, a group of Russian Jewish oligarchs has decided to fund a yearly prize of $1 million to an individual internationally renowned in his or her field who is also committed to Jewish values and Israel and supports Jewish causes. The purpose of the award, to be called “The Genesis Prize” and originally referred to by its donors as a “Jewish Nobel Prize,” is to inspire and engage young Jews. The problem is that it will not inspire...