This Romanian party called the Holocaust a ‘minor topic.’ Israel’s envoy just met with its leader.

(JR) — Israel’s ambassador to Romania met with the leader of a right-wing political party there that Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust memorial, has denounced over past comments about the genocide and World War II. On Monday, Ambassador Reuven Azar met in Bucharest with George Simion, president of the AUR party, and Yossi Dagan, the chairman […]

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Veteran catcher Ryan Lavarnway pens children’s book about how playing for Israel brought him closer to Judaism

((JR)) — When Ryan Lavarnway joined Team Israel for the World Baseball Classic in 2017, the journeyman catcher chose jersey no. 36 not because of the number stitched onto the back, but because the shirt fit him best. But in the years since that tournament, any time Lavarnway has represented Israel, he’s stuck with 36, […]

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A ‘Passover sweater’ made this Holocaust survivor a sensation. Now, a new play makes Helena Weinrauch’s story come alive.

(New York Jewish Week) — Holocaust survivor Helena Weinrauch survived imprisonment at three concentration camps and a forced death march. And yet the 99-year-old Manhattanite is, by all accounts, a force of nature. Time and again she has stared down unbelievable darkness. And yet she continues to exude a palpable joie de vivre. In the […]

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How Adam Sandler’s ‘You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah’ drew on real-life Jewish celebrations

((JR)) — To prepare for their role in creating Adam Sandler’s latest movie, crew members hit the Toronto bar and bat mitzvah circuit. Production designer Perry Blake and set decorator Julia Altschul, guided by a local consultant on the Jewish coming-of-age ceremony, crashed 10 parties within a matter of weeks. “We saw how amazing and […]

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